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ORKTOWN  CAMPAIGN 


AND  THE 


SURRENDER  OF  CORNWALLIS 


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I 
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LIBRARY 

OF  THE 

UNIVERSITY  OF  CALIFORNIA. 


Class 


or  THE 
UNIVERSITY 

Of 


THE  YORKTOWN  CAMPAIGN 


AND 


THE  SURRENDER  OF  CORNWALLIS 


1781 


BY 


HENRY  P.  JOHNSTON 


AUTHOR  OF  "THE  CAMPAIGN  OF  1776   AROUND  NEW  YORK   AND   BROOKLYN" 
'OBSERVATIONS   ON    JUDGE  JONES'S  LOYALIST  HISTORY   OF  THE  AMERICAN   REVOLUTION"  ETC. 


ILLUSTRATED 


NEW    YORK 

HARPER  &  BROTHERS,  FRANKLIN  SQUARE 

1881 


" 


Entered  according  to  Act  of  Congress,  in  the  year  1881,  by 

HARPER     &    BROTHERS, 
In   the   Office   of   the   Librarian   of   Congress,  at  Washington. 


All  rights  reserved. 


PREFACE. 


TT  is  much  to  the  credit  of  our  people  that  they  are  not  slow  in  appre- 
ciating  an  event  or  anniversary  of  really  national  significance.  The 
Centenary  of  the  Declaration  of  Independence  was  fittingly  celebrated 
the  country  over,  and  the  lesser  episodes  of  the  Revolution  have  in  turn 
been  remembered  in  the  localities  of  their  occurrence.  This  disposition  to 
show  a  proper  admiration  and  gratitude  for  the  great  things  done  by  our 
ancestors,  is  clearly  one -not  to  be  discouraged;  and  if  the  printer  and 
sculptor  succeed  in  keeping  it  alive  from  one  generation  to  another,  their 
work  will  be  recognized  as  of  peculiar  value  to  the  nation. 

In  the  surrender  of  Cornwallis  at  Yorktown,  a  century  back,  we  have 
the  last  of  these  interesting  events— the  crowning  success  which  assured 
our  Independence.  How  much  we  owe  to  it  every  one  must  be  sensible. 
The  fact  that  the  General  Government  takes  the  lead  in  the  observance 
of  its  centennial  anniversary,  is  some  indication  of  the  importance  to  be 
attached  to  it.  We  are  promised  both  a  grand  celebration  and  a  grand 
monument  on  the  Yorktown  field,  as  a  public  and  authoritative  recogni 
tion  of  what  the  victory  helped  so  greatly  to  secure  for  us. 

The  present  work  assumes  to  give  an  account  of  this  final  campaign 
of  the  Revolution  in  the  light  of  the  old  and  such  new  material  as  our 
historical  collections  offer.  The  quite  recent  publication  of  Washington's 
Manuscript  Journal,  covering  the  operations  of  1781,  would  alone  furnish 
a  temptation  to  re-study  that  period.  Its  value  can  hardly  be  overrated. 
Considerable  space  is  given  to  the  movements  of  Cornwallis  and  Lafayette 
in  Virginia,  which  had  an  important  influence  in  shaping  the  closing 
events ;  and  here  a  number  of  unpublished  letters  of  Lafayette  have 
served  to  establish  uncertain  points.  We  can  now  follow  him  from  camp 
to  camp  in  his  many  marches  over  that  State.  The  co-operation  of  the 

208131 


()  PREFACE. 

French,  which  was  indispensable  to  success,  is  brought  out  more  fully  by 
the  letters  and  journals  of  several  French  officers,  which  have  also  been 
lately  translated  arid  published.  Scattered  manuscript  letters  of  Ameri 
can  officers,  returns  of  prisoners,  and  material  captured  at  Yorktown,  pre 
served  in  the  Department  of  State  at  Washington,  and  plans  of  the  siege 
by  British,  French,  and  American  engineers  who  surveyed  the  works, 
have  been  consulted,  in  addition  to  considerable  original  material  already 
in  print.  A  list  of  the  authorities  on  this  period  is  inserted,  with  a  num 
ber  of  documents,  in  the  Appendix. 

When,  half  a  century  or  more  ago,  they  were  erecting  that  granite 
pile  on  Bunker  Hill,  some  very  practical  people  asked, "  What  good  will 
a  monument  do?"  Edward  Everett,  rousing  himself  to  one  of  his  finest 
efforts,  replete  with  classical  illustration,  silenced  them  by  asking  in  re 
turn,  "What  good  will  anything  do?"  and  the  monument  went  up.  The 
preservation  of  their  history,  in  some  form  or  other,  seems  to  be  one  of 
the  first  duties  of  a  people;  especially  where  the  record  is  praiseworthy 
and  inspiring,  as  in  our  own  case,  the  neglect  is  unpardonable.  There 
are  few  brighter  chapters  in  American  history  than  that  which  presents 
the  success  of  the  Revolution ;  and  at  this  particular  time  we  may  revive 
it,  perhaps,  with  advantage,  as  tending,  in  a  certain  way,  to  strengthen 
the  national  good-feeling  with  which  we  enter  upon  the  second  century 
of  our  experience.  We  cannot  but  take  a  common  pride  in  Yorktown. 

New  York  City,  1881. 


CONTENTS. 


CHAPTER  I.  PAOE 

SIGNIFICANCE  OF  TIIK  EVENT  ...............................................................................     11 

CHAPTER  II. 
OPERATIONS  LEADING  TO  YORKTOWN.  —  CORNWALLLS  IN  THE  CAHOLINAS  ................     17 

CHAPTER  III. 

G'ORNWALLIS   AND   LAFAYETTE    IN   VIRGINIA  ..........................................................       5>9 


CHAPTER  IV. 

WASHINGTON  IN  THE  CAMPAIGN.  —  PLANS  AND  MOVEMENTS  ox  THE  HUDSON.  —  CO 

OPERATION  OF  THE  FRENCH  ..........................................................................     71 

CHAPTER  V. 

THE  MARCH    UPON   CORNWALLIS.  —  MOVEMENTS    OF    THE   FRENCH    AND   ENGLISH 

FLEETS  ........................................................................................................     87 

CHAPTER  VI. 
THE  SIEGE  OF  YORKTOWN  ...................................................................................  105 

CHAPTER  VII. 
THE  SURRENDER  ................................................................................................  151 


APPENDIX  ..............................................................................  ..........................  163 


INDEX...  ..  199 


ILLUSTRATIONS  AND  MAPS. 


PAGE 
THE  SURRENDER  OF  CORNWALLIS Frontispiece 

LORD  CORNWALLIS 20 

[AFTER  THE  PAINTING  BY  COPLEY,  R.A.] 

GENERAL  NATHANIEL  GREENE 25 

MAP  SHOWING  THE  ROUTE  AND  OPERATIONS  OF  CORNWALLIS  IN  THE  SOUTH 27 

[FROM  FADEN'S  MAP,  LONDON,  1787.] 

THE  MARQUIS  DE  LAFAYETTE 31 

[FROM  THE  ENGRAVING  PUBLISHED  BY  HIS  FAMILY.] 

GENERAL  DANIEL  MORGAN 36 

LIEUTENANT- COLONEL  TARLETON 42 

[FROM  THE  PAINTING  BY  SIR  JOSHUA  REYNOLDS  IN  THE  GOVERNOR'S  MANSION,  RICHMOND,  VA.] 

THOMAS  JEFFERSON 50 

[FROM  THE  ORIGINAL  PORTRAIT  BY  GILBERT  STUART.] 

MAP  SHOWING  THE  OPERATIONS  OF  CORNWALLIS  AND  LAFAYETTE  IN  VIRGINIA 57 

GENERAL  ANTHONY  WAYNE 65 

[TRUMBULL.] 

GEORGE  WASHINGTON 73 

|KiH»M  THE  ORIGINAL  PORTRAIT  BY  TRUMBULL  IN  THE  YALE  ART  GALLERY,  NEW  HAVES.] 

COUNT  DE  ROCHAMHEAU 81 

ROUTE  OF  WASHINGTON'S  ARMY  FROM  THE  HUDSON  TO  YORKTOWN 89 

ROBERT  MORRIS 93 

COUNT  DE  GRASSE 100 

SECTION  OF  THE  FIRST  UNITED  STATES  SURVEY  OF  THE  VIRGINIA   PENINSULA,  1818,  SHOWING 

TOPOGRAPHY  AND  LANDINGS 103 

[BY  MAJOR  JAMES  KEARNEY,  Top.  ENG.] 

BRITISH  OFFICERS  RECEIVING  THE  NEWS  OF  WASHINGTON'S  APPROACH 107 

GENERAL  PETER  MUHLENBERG 110 

GENERAL  HENRY  Ksox 125 

[GlLBKKT   STUART.] 

PLAN  OF  THE  SIEGE  OF  YORKTOWN 133 

BARON  STEUBEN 137 

PLAN  OF  THE  STORMING  OK  THE  BRITISH  REDOUBTS  Nos.  9  AND  10,  NIGHT  OF  OCT.  14m,  1781  144 

ALEXANDER  HAMILTON 146 

THE  MOORE  HOUSE 152 

FAC-SIMILE  OF  ONE  OF  THE  ARTICLES  OF  CAPITULATION 153 

GENERAL  BENJAMIN  LINCOLN 156 

Louis  XVI.  .  .  160 


THE  YORKTOWN  CAMPAIGN. 


CHAPTER   I. 

SIGNIFICANCE   OF   THE   EVENT. 

surrender  of  Cornwallis  at  Yorktown,  Virginia,  on  the  19th  of 
October,  1781,  marks  the  successful  close  of  the  American  Revolu 
tion.  True,  peace  had  yet  to  come,  and  the  final  treaty  was  not  to  be 
ratified  until  two  years  later;  but  the  decisive  character  of  the  event  was 
speedily  recognized  by  England's  civil  and  military  leaders,  and  by  the 
spring  of  the  year  1782  both  parties  had  suspended,  as  if  by  common 
consent,  all  further  aggressive  operations.  The  independence  of  the 
United  States  may  be  said  to  have  been  then  and  there  assured  beyond 
question. 

By  the  men  of  that  time — the  men  of  the  Revolution- — the  intelli 
gence  of  this  signal  victory  was  received  with  the  deepest  joy  and  grati 
tude.  Xo  incident  of  the  struggle,  the  surrender  of  Burgoyne  not  ex- 
cepted,  aroused  such  universal  and  spontaneous  enthusiasm.  At  Philadel 
phia,  upon  the  arrival  of  the  news,  the  Continental  Congress  proceeded 
in  a  body  to  church,  joined  in  a  special  service  of  thanksgiving,  and  at  a 
later  session  resolved  to  erect  a  marble  column  at  Yorktown  in  commem 
oration  of  the  triumph.  It  voted  honors  to  the  allied  army  and  its  chiefs, 
and  recommended  to  the  people  the  observance  of  a  national  fast.  As 
the  news  spread  through  the  towns  and  villages  the  inhabitants  indulged 
in  every  variety  of  celebration.  Bonfires,  illuminations,  salutes,  proces 
sions,  "  ox-roasts,"  public  meetings,  addresses,  and  sermons  were  the  order 
of  the  day.  The  completeness  of  the  victory,  its  magnitude,  its  unexpect 
edness,  in  view  of  the  slender  prospect  of  such  an  event  but  a  few  weeks 
before,  added  zest  to  the  general  rejoicing;  while  back  of  this  remained 
the  more  satisfying  conviction  that  the  success  had  sounded  the  death- 
knell  of  British  domination  in  America,  and  that  the  late  colonist  and 


12  THE  YORKTOWN  CAMPAIGN. 

subject  had  at  last  made  good  his  determination  to  live  under  a  govern 
ment  of  his  own.  With  Yorktown  men  looked  upon  the  Revolution 
as  accomplished. 

An  event  with  such  a  result  becomes  a  starting-point  in  our  history. 
We  are,  in  a  certain  sense,  under  the  profoundest  obligations  to  it.  It 
announced  to  the  world  that  the  Declaration  of  Independence  in  1776 
was  no  manifesto  of  a  groundless  and  unsuccessful  rebellion,  but  the  cor 
ner-stone  of  a  new  structure  erected  upon  the  ruins  of  England's  colonial 
system  on  this  continent.  It  introduced  us,  through  the  consequent  peace, 
to  the  family  of  nations  as  one  of  their  number.  Practically  our  auton 
omy  dates  from  it;  and  it  is  in  this  light,  in  appreciation  of  this  boon, 
that  the  National  Congress  of  to-day  carries  out  the  good  intentions  pf 
the  Congress  of  1781,  and  erects  the  intended  monument  upon  the  field 
of  the  victory. 

The  Revolution,  of  course,  was  not  achieved  at  Yorktown  alone.  All 
the  previous  events  of  the  struggle  must  be  associated  with  it.  Yorktown 
is  to  be  regarded,  rather,  as  a  representative  and  crowning  victory  —  the 
end  of  a  six  years'  contest,  the  last  and  most  brilliant  of  a  series  of  blows 
delivered  in  spite  of  a  series  of  defeats  sustained.  Each  contributed  its 
part.  Without  Lexington  and  Quebec,  and  Saratoga  and  Germantown, 
and  Yalley  Forge  and  Monmouth,  and  Cowpens  and  the  other  fields,  both 
of  victory  and  defeat,  Yorktown,  it  need  hardly  be  said,  would  have  been 
long  deferred,  if  it  ever  came.  Upon  that  field  we  have  the  legitimate 
fruition  of  the  faith,  the  courage,  and  the  trials  displayed  and  endured 
through  all  the  tedious  years  of  the  war.  If  Bunker  Hill  represents  a 
resolution  made  to  resist  Parliamentary  aggression  to  the  end,  Yorktown 
represents  that  resolution  kept.  Yorktown  represents  both  the  struggle 
and  the  success  of  the  Revolution. 

And  yet,  while  acknowledging  that  the  victory,  in  this  sense,  secured 
the  independence  of  the  United  States,  do  we  give  it  its  fullest  and  broad 
est  significance?  Here  some  interesting  speculations  are  suggested.  No 
doubt  the  attainment  of  independence — separate  national  life — where  a 
people  are  ripe  for  it,  is  a  grand  result,  every  way  worth  commemora- 
tinf.  The  fflobe  is  dotted  over  with  memorials  and  battle-fields,  reminding 

Do  ^ 

the  race  of  earnest  and  noble  efforts — some  successful,  some  not — to  throw 
off  oppressive  rule  and  secure  self-rule.  These  struggles  adorn  history, 
making  its  brightest  pages.  But  in  our  own  case  we  may  go  farther. 
At  this  distance  of  time  we  may  combine  with  this  fact  of  independence 
certain  distinctive  and  far-reaching  effects  following  in  its  train,  which 
already  add  to  its  dignity  and  grandeur.  Taking  in  the  entire  range  of 


SIGNIFICANCE   OF  THE   EVENT.  13 

such  effects,  both  those  developing  and  those  possible,  the  future  historian 
with  a  philosophic  turn  may  put  some  old  truths  of  to-day  in  a  new  form. 
Xot  dwelling  so  much  upon  the  single  circumstance  of  the  rise  of  a  sep 
arate  nation  here,  he  is  likely  to  call  attention  to  the  more  strictly  ethno 
logical  fact  that  our  Revolution  permanently  divided  one  of  the  dominant 
families  of  the  human  race.  He  will  notice  that  as  a  result  of  Yorktown 
the  Anglo-Saxon  branch  was  bisected ;  that  with  the  success  of  the  Col 
onists  it  shot  out  into  tM'O  careers,  for  one  of  which  an  entirely  new  field, 
an  undeveloped  continent,  lay  open.  At  a  time  when  tendencies  in  Eu 
rope  looked  toward  the  closer  unification  of  similar  people,  here  he  will 
find  a  disruption. 

This  question  of  the  race  and  its  subdivisions,  now  coming  forward 
more  prominently  as  a  distinct  study,  must  eventually  directly  concern 
ourselves.  The  questions  inviting  renewed  investigation  relate  to  the 
starting-point  of  the  European  families,  their  lines  of  earliest  migration, 
the  discovered  relationship  of  their  languages  to  the  most  ancient  forms 
in  Asia,  the  parting  of  one  group  from  another,  and  the  slow  but  observ 
able  continuation  of  the  process  of  dispersion  and  commingling  in  modern 
times.  There  can  be  little  doubt  that  the  separation  of  the  Anglo-Saxon 
family  a  century  since  is  also  destined  to  attract  the  attention  of  the 
future  ethnologist,  precisely  as  the  Anglo-Saxon  of  to-day  himself  studies 
with  peculiar  interest  those  two  Conquests  of  England  which  laid  the 
foundation  of  the  original  branch.  As  the  modern  Englishman  perhaps 
reflects  with  curiosity  upon  the  fact  that  his  ancestors,  eight  centuries 
back,  may  have  been  either  native  or  Teuton  or  Xorman,  so,  possibly, 
the  Anglo-American  of  the  Mississippi  Valley  or  the  Pacific  Slope,  eight 
centuries  hence,  may  indulge  in  a  similar  curiosity  respecting  the  origin 
of  his  ancestors,  and  wonder  if  they  ever  were  Englishmen.  That  the 
common  Anglo-Saxon  civilization  of  the  past  has  worked  upon  the  whole 
benignly  for  mankind,  is  acknowledged  ;  the  Anglo-Saxon  himself  certain 
ly  believes  and  rejoices  in  it.  May  nof  a  career  even  more  progressive 
be  expected  of  that  element  in  it  which  has  made  this  continent  its  home, 
and  which,  while  continually  drawing  and  learning  from  the  old,  is  now 
developing  here  under  its  own  new  and  favorable  conditions?  Whatever 
great  things  are  the  outcome,  we  must  date  them,  in  a  certain  measure, 
from  Yorktown. 

Putting  the  matter  in  more  practical  shape — what  has  been  the  effect 
of  the  Revolution  of  1776  thus  far  upon  these  two  groups  of  the  same 
family,  the  English  and  Americans?  The  answer  must  have  a  sort  of 
test  character ;  and  from  the  latter  it  comes  without  hesitation.  It  has 


14  THE   YORKTOWN   CAMPAIGN. 

been  our  habit  to  claim  very  marked  and  salutary  effects  upon  ourselves, 
the  tendency  being  to  assume  too  much,  perhaps.  The  doubter,  in'  fact, 
will  modify  the  claim  with  a  pointed  question  or  two.  What,  for  in 
stance,  would,  in  all  likelihood,  have  been  the  status  both  of  this  conti 
nent  and  Great  Britain  had  there  been  no  Revolution — no  separation  ?  If 
the  England  of  to-day  stands,  as  she  claims,  at  the  head  of  civilization, 
why  should  she  not  have  held  the  same  proud  pre-eminence  with  her 
American  possessions  added  ?  Are  the  United  States  so  superior  to  Great 
Britain  that  the  effects  of  the  Revolution  are  observable  at  a  glance?  If 

c5 

not,  what  evident  and  solid  good  has  the  separation  done  either  side  ? 
These  are  questions  more  readily  asked  than  answered,  for  the  answers 
must,  in  some  degree,  be  speculative.  But  they  may  be  met,  and  met  with 
counter-questions.  Is  it  certain  that,  but  for  our  Revolution,  the  England 
of  to-day  would  have  been  all  that  she  is  ?  Is  it  in  the  least  probable 
that  Colonial  America  would  have  stood  where  independent,  autonomous 
America  stands?  Would  universal  interests  have  been  as  happily  served  ? 

It  is  enough,  in  this  connection,  to  state  these  questions  without  dis 
cussing  them.  As  for  ourselves,  no  one  can  doubt  that  we  have  taken  a 
long  stride  in  advance  of  what  we  could  have  taken  as  an  appendage,  or 
even  as  a  powerful  arm,  of  the  British  Empire.  It  will  hardly  be  claimed 
that  we  could  have  developed  our  individuality,  or  risen  to  our  present 
acknowledged  prominence,  tied  to  Mother  England's  apron-strings.  On 
the  contrary,  we  have  had  here  the  rebound  and  exhilaration  of  a  people 
suddenly  freed  from  irksome  ties,  conscious  of  a  destiny,  building  up  a 
political  system  out  of  their  own  ideas  of  liberty  and  self-respect,  opening 
up  an  immense  territory  for  all  who  will  come,  disputing  the  sovereignty 
of  the  sea,  and  surprising  the  world  with  enterprises  and  benefits.  From 
the  germ  of  the  Revolution  the  nation  has  blossomed  into  what  Carlyle 
has  so  fitly  described  as  the  "American  Saxondom." 

How  far  England  is  better  off  by  the  separation  is  another  point. 
Ever  since  Charles  Dickens — the  humor  and  accuracy  of  whose  pictures 
is  quite  as  much  appreciated  here  as  in  England — put  us  in  a  somewhat 
ludicrous  light  before  his  countrymen  (and,  in  truth,  long  before),  a  cer 
tain  element  among  them  have  been  slow  to  admit  that  we  have  had  the 
slightest  influence  upon  Great  Britain's  welfare.  In  some  respects  the 
separation  would  be  regarded  as  an  advantage  to  her.  Speaking  politi 
cally  and  historically,  however,  a  considerable  influence  has  passed  from 
these  shores  to  the  other  side.  The  struggle  for  rights  and  privileges 
between  king  and  subject,  culminating  first  in  Magna  Charta  and  again 
in  their  own  Revolution,  was  continued  in  a  more  constitutional  form  in 


SIGNIFICANCE   OF   THE   EVENT.  15 

the  reigns  of  the  Georges,  and  received  a  fresh  impetus  at  home  by  its 
success  in  the  Colonies  here.  That  much  necessarily  followed.  It  is  not 
to  be  assumed  that  the  successful  revolt  of  three  million  Englishmen,  on 
this  side,  against  king,  ministry,  and  parliament,  had  no  effect  upon  the 
political  situation  in  England  herself;  especially  as  the  revolting  subjects 
were  among  her  freest  and  most  enlightened  subjects,  who  claimed  that 
they  were  asserting  their  rights  under  the  home  constitution  against  the 
exercise  of  arbitrary  power  not  authorized,  as  they  felt,  by  that  constitu 
tion.  One  result  did  follow  upon  the  surrender  of  Cornwallis— a  change 
of  ministry.  The  throne  had  been  defeated;  public  sentiment  called  for 
the  close  of  the  war  and  a  new  policy  generally.  Then  there  followed 
steadily  all  those  schemes  of  parliamentary  and  other  reforms  which  give 
the  English  subject  to-day  far  more  liberty  and  privilege  than  he  enjoyed 
a  century  ago,  and  which,  but  for  the  American  Revolution,  he  would  not 
have  obtained  within  as  short  a  period.  The  English  people,  in  fact,  seem 
to  the  observer  on  this  side  about  as  closely  wedded  to  the  idea  of  self- 
government  as  the  American.  Is  not  the  tendency  there  away  from  pre 
rogative  ? 

Whether  universal  world-interests  would  have  been  served  as  well  had 
the  separation  never  occurred,  is  another  question  by  which  to  test  the 
significance  of  Yorktown  and  the  Revolution.  Had  there  been  no  other 

c5 

interruption  of  her  progress,  the  British  Empire,  with  America  as  part  of 
her  dominion,  would  in  all  probability  have  risen  to  a  power  of  overshad 
owing  influence.  At  the  time  of  the  Revolution  she  monopolized  the 
seas,  and  her  trade  and  commerce  were  carried  on  upon  the  most  exclusive 
principles.  As  her  population  and  territory  increased,  as  America  con 
tributed  more  and  more  to  her  wealth 'and  land  and  naval  strength,  it  may 
be  seriously  questioned  whether  she  would  have  grown  correspondingly 
lenient  and  liberal  toward  her  rivals  or  neighbors.  Would  she  have  re 
laxed  her  grasp  upon  the  world?  Great  empires  seem  to  have  followed 
out  common  policies :  they  overawe  or  absorb  or  repress  surrounding 
people.  This  has  been  their  record.  Did  Yorktown,  then,  break  up  an 
empire  which  threatened  to  become  overwhelming?  Necessarily  we  are 
led  here  into  speculation,  but  it  is  within  the  proper  range  of  inquiry  to 
note  what  possible  or  probable  results  were,  judging  from  the  experience 
of  history,  averted  by  a  given  event.  This  conclusion,  at  least,  may  be 
confidently  stated,  that  for  Great  Britain  Yorktown  proved  to  be  what 
Marathon  and  Platgea  were  for  Persia,  what  Blenheim  was  for  France, 
what  Waterloo  and  Sedan  were  for  the  two  Napoleons  —  a  levelling 
blow,  curbing  power,  resenting  aggression,  adjusting  the  relation  between 


16  THE  YORKTOWN  CAMPAIGN. 

rights  and  authority  upon  a  nicer  balance,  and  cutting  out  new  ruts  for 
the  course  of  events.  If  in  addition  it  has  contributed  in  any  degree  to 
hasten  what  is  called  Progress  and  the  welfare  of  humanity,  and  has  as 
sured  a  greater  measure  of  peace  throughout  the  globe  than  would  other 
wise  have  been  the  case,  the  event  is  to  be  regarded  with  the  deepest  in 
terest.1  Reviewing  it  from  every  stand-point,  and  we  may  recall  those 
salient  words  of  Webster  spoken  under  the  shadow  of  Bunker  Hill,  that 
the  American  Revolution  was  "  the  prodigy  of  modern  times,  at  once  the 
wonder  and  the  blessing  of  the  world." 

Every  incident  of  an  event  which  has  secured  such  happy  results  seems 
to  be  worthy  of  being  recorded  and  remembered;  and  in  the  succeeding 
chapters  it  is  proposed  to  give  a  history  of  what  may  be  called  the  York- 
town  Campaign.  The  British  general  who  was  finally  compelled  to  sur 
render  appears  as  the  leading  figure  in  the  scene.  His  career  will  be  no 
ticed  with  some  degree  of  fulness,  and  the  second  and  third  chapters  are 
devoted  to  operations  on  his  part  that  remotely  or  directly  led  to  his  over 
throw.  The  remaining  chapters  include  the  immediate  movements  on 
both  sides,  culminating  in  the  siege  and  capitulation. 

1  "At  all  events,"  says  Mr.  Freeman,  the  English  historian,  "the  American  Union 
has  actually  secured,  for  what  is  really  a  long  period  of  time,  a  greater  amount  of 
combined  peace  and  freedom  than  was  ever  before  enjoyed  by  so  large  a  portion  of 
the  earth's  surface.  There  have  been,  and  still  are,  vaster  despotic  empires,  but  never 
before  has  so  large  an  inhabited  territory  remained  for  seventy  years  in  the  enjoyment 
at  once  of  internal  freedom  and  of  exemption  from  the  scourge  of  internal  war.1'  — 
History  of  Federal  Government  from  the,  Foundation  of  the  Achaian  League,  etc.,  vol.  i., 
p.  112. 


OPERATIONS  LEADING  TO  YORKTOWN.  17 


CHAPTER  II. 

OPERATIONS   LEADING   TO  YORKTOWN.— CORNWALLIS   IN   THE   CAROLINAS. 

IN  its  efforts  to  subdue  the  American  rebellion  the  British  Government 
followed  out  successively  two  grand  schemes  of  operation,  with  inter 
vals  of  inaction  and  apparent  quandary.  The  first  plan  was  to  crush  the 
head  of  the  reptile;  and,  failing  in  this,  the  second  was  to  cut  its  body 
in  two.  Either  scheme  might  have  done  the  work  ;  neither  succeeded. 
Great  Britain  miscalculated  the  vitality  of  the  monster. 

The  contest  opened  in  dead  earnest  at  New  York,  in  1776.  Seventeen 
hundred  and  seventy-five  had  been  the  year  of  uprising,  of  preparation, 
of  Bunker  Hill.  Seventeen  hundred  and  seventy-six  brought  the  enemy 
fully  aroused,  when  they  defeated  the  untrained  American  force  on  Long 
Island,  and,  in  September,  captured  New  York  City.  A  year  later  they 
took  Philadelphia.  That  same  fall  Burgoyne  marched  down  from  the 
St.  Lawrence  to  seize  Albany  and  control  the  Hudson. 

The  strategy  and  policy  of  these  movements  were  apparent.  From, 
the  two  cities  the  British  intended  to  overawe  the  Central  States  of  Penn 
sylvania  and  New  York,  and  the  effect  of  Burgoyne's  success  was  ex 
pected  to  be  the  complete  severance  of  the  strong  New  England  Colonies 
from  the  rest  of  the  country.  With  British  ships  supreme  upon  the  sea, 
and  British  armies  holding  the  lines  of  communication  inland,  any  effec 
tive  military  co-operation  and  transfer  of  supplies  on  the  part  of  the  North 
would  have  been  difficult,  if  not  wholly  impossible.  We  might  thus  have 
found  the  head  and  front  of  the  revolt,  as  the  enemy  regarded  it,  from 
Massachusetts  to  Pennsylvania  reduced  to  a  fatally  disjointed  and  shat 
tered  condition  within  eighteen  months  after  the  capture  of  New  York. 
This  result,  however,  was  not  to  be.  Burgoyne  was  entrapped  in  the 
forest.  New  York  and  Philadelphia  had  not  become  centres  of  recov 
ered  territory.  In  less  than  a  year  Philadelphia  \vas  given  up,  for  the 
sake  of  concentration,  and  by  the  close  of  1778  the  forces  of  Great  Britain 
occupied  nothing  more  than  New  York  and  its  environs  in  the  whole 
stretch  of  her  recent  possessions  from  the  Potomac  to  the  Penobscot. 

2 


18  THE  YORKTOWN  CAMPAIGN. 

Here  was  manifest  failure;  indeed,  confession  of  failure.  The  North 
ern  Colonies,  as  a  point  of  attack,  were  still  a  unit.  However  inferior  to 
the  enemy  their  troops  may  have  been,  both  in  numbers  and  discipline, 
they  could  still  co-operate.  The  men  from  Massachusetts,  New  York, 
Pennsylvania,  and  Virginia  still  stood  "shoulder  to  shoulder"  under 
Washington's  command.  Together  they  held1  West  Point  and  the  Hisrli- 

»  c? 

lands — the  key  of  the  entire  situation — and  subsisted  upon  supplies  drawn 
alike  from  the  Eastern  and  Middle  States.  The  original  scheme  of  break 
ing  up  this  united  opposition  had  not  worked ;  and  in  consequence  the 
enemy  will  be  found  developing,  in  the  latter  years  of  the  war,  another 
plan  for  bringing  the  Colonists  to  terms. 

Baffled  at  the  North,  but  without  abandoning  it,  the  British  leaders 
next  turned  their  attention  to  the  conquest  of  the  less  populous  South. 
It  was  a  change  of  tactics — a  thrust  at  a  more  exposed  and  vulnerable 
point.  They  proceeded  upon  the  assumption  that,  if  the  Southern  prov 
inces  should  first  be  subdued  and  recovered  in  fact,  the  Northern  could 
thereafter  be  reduced  by  isolation  and  exhaustion.  Matters  would  be 
more  simplified.  Cut  the  rebellious  Union  in  two  and  weaken  its  power, 
was  in  effect  the  new  policy  of  the  home  cabinet.  The  plan  promised 
well,  especially  as  the  enemy's  naval  supremacy  enabled  them  to  move 
their  troops  to  distant  points  with  ease  and  comparative  speed;  and  for  a 
time  its  execution  was  attended  with  success.  Developing  with  circum 
stances,  it  did  not  necessarily  imply  inactivity  at  the  North. 

Lord  Germaine,  the  King's  war  minister,  who  had  become  impatient 
over  the  protracted  struggle, appears  to  have  been  the  author  of  this  scheme. 
The  first  step  was  to  make  a  permanent  conquest  of  Florida  and  Georgia, 
and  then  of  the  Carolinas:  operations  to  begin  in  the  fall  of  1778.  "A 
line  of  communication  was  to  be  established  across  South  and  North  Car 
olina,  and  the  planters  on  the  sea-coast  were  to  be  reduced  to  the  necessity 
of  abandoning,  or  being  abandoned  by,  their  slaves.  Five  thousand  ad 
ditional  men  were  at  a  later  date  to  be  sent  to  Charleston  ;  and,  on  the 
landing  of  a  small  corps  at  Cape  Fear,  Germaine  believed  that  'large 
numbers  of  the  inhabitants  would  doubtless  flock  to  the  standard  of  the 
king,  whose  government  would  be  restored  in  North  Carolina.'  Then, 
by  proper  diversions  in  Virginia  and  Maryland,  he  said,  it  might  not  be 
too  much  to  expect  that  all  America  to  the  south  of  the  Susquehanna 
would  return  to  its  allegiance."1  Nothing  but  disappointment  at  the  re- 

1  Germaine  to  Clinton  (most  secret),  March  8th,  1778,  as  given  in  Bancroft,  vol.  x., 
p.  284.  How  earnestly  the  Louie  government  urged  the  Southern  scheme,  and  how  failure 


OPERATIONS  LEADING  TO  YORKTOWN.  10 

suits  of  the  Avar  thus  far  could  have  prompted  these  new  operations. 
Burgoyne  had  surrendered ;  France  had  made  the  cause  of  America  her 
own  by  alliance;  and  the  determination  of  the  Northern  Colonists  had 
shown  no  sensible  wavering  under  the  successes  of  Sir  William  Howe  in 
the  capture  of  New  York  and  Philadelphia,  It  was  clearly  a  necessity  to 
make  a  better  record.  There  could  have  been  no  call  for  a  Southern  cam 
paign  were  the  Northern  and  Middle  Colonies  upon  th-e  point  of  submis 
sion,  as  their  reduction  would  inevitably  have  been  followed  by  that  of 
the  rest.  After  1778,  accordingly,  we  find  activity  in  the  South.  On 
December  29th  of  that  year  Savannah  was  taken  by  the  enemy,  and  in 
January  following  Augusta  occupied.  Major-general  Benjamin  Lincoln, 
of  Massachusetts,  was  sent  to  oppose  the  enemy's  further  progress;  but 
in  1780,  in  attempting  to  defend  Charleston,  disaster  befell  him.  Sir 
Henry  Clinton,  the  British  commander-in-chief  at  New  York,  headed  an 
expedition  to  South  Carolina,  besieged  Lincoln,  and  obliged  him  to  sur 
render,  with  two  thousand  Continentals  and  as  many  militia,  on  the  12th 
of  May.  Then,  proceeding  into  the  interior  of  the  State,  the  enemy  estab 
lished  themselves  at  the  principal  points  to  overawe  the  inhabitants  and 
hold  the  territory.  Their  main  force  took  up  a  position  beyond  the  town 
of  Camden.  Clinton,  after  the  surrender  of  Charleston,  returned  to  New 
York. 

The  general  now  to  figure  conspicuously  in  the  Southern  operations, 
who  had  come  from  New  York  with  Clinton,  and  to  whom  the  latter  had 
assigned  the  duty  of  securing  and  extending  the  conquests  already  made, 
was  the  Earl  Charles  Corn  wallis,  lieutenant-general  in  the  British  army, 
and  second  in  command  of  the  King's  forces  in  America.  lie  made  his 
first  appearance  in  the  field  at  the  Battle  of  Long  Island,  in  1776;  then  at 
the  capture  of  New  York ;  again  at  Trenton,  where  Washington  blinded 


would  disappoint  it,  appears  from  the  following  from  Lord  Germaine  to  Clinton,  under 
date  of  May  3d,  1781:  "The  reduction  of  the  Southern  provinces  must  give  the  death- 
wound  to  the  rebellion,  notwithstanding  any  assistance  the  French  may  be  able  to  give 
it;  and  if  that  were  the  case,  a  general  peace  would  soon  follow,  and  this  country  bo 
delivered  from  the  most  burdensome  and  extensive  war  it  ever  was  engaged  in.  As 
so  much,  therefore,  depends  upon  our  successes  in  America,  you  cannot  be  surprised 
that  the  eyes  of  all  the  people  of  England  are  turned  upon  you,  nor  at  the  anxiety  with 
which  the  King  and  all  his  servants  wait  for  accounts  of  your  movements.  And  as  I 
am  most  immediately  interested  of  any  of  them  in  your  success,  you  will,  I  hope,  excuse 
the  earnestness  and  frequency  of  my  exhortations  to  decision  in  council,  and  activity, 
vigor,  and  perseverance  in  execution  of  his  Majesty's  pleasure,  which  you  are  now  fully 
informed  of." — Parliamentary  Register,  1782-'83. 


20 


THE   YORKTOWN   CAMPAIGN. 


1.0KU    (JOKNWALLIS.        [AFTKK    THK    TAINTING    BY    COl'LEY,  R.A.] 

him  with  camp-fires  while  lie  silently  marched  to  his  rear,  out  of  harm's 
way,  through  Princeton  ;  at  Brandywine  also,  and  Germantown,  and  final 
ly  at  the  South.  Representing  an  old  family  in  London,  where  he  was 
born  in  1738,  he  spent  his  school-clays  at  Eton,  entered  the  army  at  eigh 
teen,  was  elected  to  Parliament,  where  he  voted  against  the  taxation  of 


OPERATIONS  LEADING  TO  YOKKTOWN.  21 

America,  and  at  the  opening  of  the  war  joined  in  suppressing  the  Colo 
nists.  A  man  now  in  the  prime  of  life,  displaying  superior  military  ca 
pacity,  never  lacking  in  resources  —  cold,  severe,  active  —  the  confidence 
reposed  in  him  by  the  army  and  the  home  government  flattering  in  the 
extreme — and  we  have  the  leader  who  was  to  march  destructively  through 
the  South,  until  he  submitted  at  Yorktown  to  have  his  name  forever  as 
sociated  with  the  very  event  he  sought  to  prevent  —  the  final  victory 
which  secured  American  Independence. 

The  instructions  which  Cornwallis  received  from  Clinton,  upon  the 
latter's  departure,  were  of  a  general  character,  lie  \vas  expected,  first  of 
all,  to  see  that  Charleston  was  secure,  and  then  add  to  the  territory  al 
ready  overrun  as  opportunity  offered  and  his  judgment  approved.1  Clin 
ton  left  him  an  ample  force,  and  confided  much  to  his  discretion  and 
abilities.  An  ambitious  officer  could  not  have  found  himself  in  a  more 
gratifying  position  than  Cornwallis  then  occupied,  with  the  entire  Southern 
field  open  to  him  for  the  exercise  of  his  military  talents.  Nor  was  he 
slow  in  improving  the  opportunity,  as  we  find  him  immediately  laying  out 
plans,  in  connection  with  Clinton,  for  the  further  reduction  of  the  South. 
While  there  was  a  general  understanding  between  the  two  as  to  the  policy 
to  be  pursued,  the  details — the  when  and  how  of  the  operations — were  left 
to  Cornwallis.  His  first  anxiety  was  to  secure  what  he  already  had, 
namely,  Charleston  and  a  good  part  of  South  Carolina;  and  to  do  this 
he  proposed  to  invade  and  obtain  a  foothold  in  North  Carolina,  while 
Clinton  sent  an  expedition  into  the  Chesapeake  to  co-operate  with  him 
to  the  extent  of  engaging  the  attention  of  Virginia,  and  threaten  any 
Continental  force  that  might  seek  to  go  southward  from  that  State.  North 
Carolina,  in  other  words,  was  to  be  held  as  a  barrier  for  the  protection  of 
the  States  below  it.  The  conquest  of  Virginia  did  not  then  enter  into 
the  plan.  It  was  as  early  as  August  6th,  1780,  that  Cornwallis  wrote  to 
Clinton :  "  It  may  be  doubted  by  some  whether  the  invasion  of  North 

1  From  instructions  to  Lieutenant-general  Earl  Cornwallis,  dated  Head-quarters,  Charles 
ton,  Jane  1st,  1780. 

"Upon  my  departure  from  hence  you  will  be  pleased  to  take  command  of  the 
troops  mentioned  in  the  enclosed  return,  and  of  all  other  troops  now  here,  or  that  may 
arrive  in  my  absence.  Your  Lordship  will  make  such  changes  in  the  position  of  them 
as  you  may  judge  most  conducive  to  his  Majesty's  service,  for  the  defence  of  this 
most  important  post  and  its  dependencies.  At  the  same  time,  it  is  by  no  means  my 
intention  to  prevent  your  acting  offensively,  in  case  an  opportunity  should  offer,  con 
sistent  with  the  security  of  thin  place,  which  is  always  to  be  regarded  as  a  primary  ob 
ject.'1' —  Clinton's  Answer, 


22  THE  YORKTOWN  CAMPAIGN. 

Carolina  may  be  a  prudent  measure;  bnt  I  am  convinced  it  is  a  necessary 
one,  and  that  if  we  do  not  attack  that  province,  we  must  give  tip  both 
South  Carolina  and  Georgia,  and  retire  within  the  walls  of  Charleston." 
The  battle  of  Canxlen  followed,  upon  the  15th  of  August,  when  Corn- 
wallis  met  Gates  and  inflicted  upon  him  the  most  complete  defeat  the 
Americans  had  suffered  in  the  open  field.  After  this  important  success 
the  British  general  explained  his  projects  to  his  chief  a  little  more  fully. 
On  August  23d  he  wrote :  "  It  is  difficult  to  form  a  plan  of  oper 
ations,  which  must  depend  so  much  on  circumstances.  But  it  at  pres 
ent  appears  to  me  that  I  should  endeavor  to  get  as  soon  as  possible 
to  Hillsborough  [N.  C.],  and  there  assemble  and  try  to  arrange  the 
friends  who  are  inclined  to  arm  in  our  favor,  and  endeavor  to  form  a 
very  large  magazine  for  the  winter — of  flour  and  meal  from  the  coun 
try,  and  of  rum,  salt,  etc.,  from  Cross  Creek,  which  I  understand  to  be 
about  eighty  miles'  carriage.  But  all  this  will  depend  on  the  opera 
tions  which  your  Excellency  may  think  proper  to  pursue  in  the  Chesa 
peake,  which  appears  to  me,  next  to  the  security  of  New  York,  to  be 
one  of  the  most  important  objects  of  the  war."  Clinton  approved  of 
this,  and  on  the  10th  of  October  lent  Ins  co-operation  by  sending  Gen 
eral  Leslie,  with  a  force  of  two  thousand  two  hundred  and  six,  rank 
and  file,  to  the  Chesapeake,  with  orders  to  establish  a  station  at  Ports 
mouth,  on  the  Elizabeth  River,  and  make  a  diversion  in  favor  of  Corn- 
wallis,  by  going  up  toward  Richmond.  All  further  orders  he  was  to 
receive  direct  from  that  general. 

Cornwallis  found  a  rough  road  to  the  realization  of  his  plans.  Cam- 
den  had  suddenly  increased  his  reputation,  and  presented  him  to  the 
South  as  the  prospective  master  of  her  territory;  but  he  was  soon  to  dis 
cover  that  he  could  sustain  himself  only  by  the  utmost  exertions  under 
the  greatest  difficulties.  His  new  antagonist  in  the  field,  since  the  defeat 
of  Gates,  was  General  Nathaniel  Greene,  who  proved  himself  his  equal  in 
all  respects,  except  in  the  possession  of  a  veteran  army  upon  which  he  could 
depend.  The  story  of  Greene's  noble  efforts  to  thwart  the  designs  of  the 
enemy  has  been  too  often  told  to  need  repetition  ;  it  is  with  his  danger 
ous  opponent, -who  is  to  become  the  central  figure  at  Yorktown,  that  we 
are  more  concerned  in  this  connection.  It  is  enough  to  say  that  Greene 
quickly  put  new  life  into  the  remnants  of  Gates's  defeated  force,  and 
made  his  presence  irksome  to  the  British.  The  first  check  Cornwallis 
received  occurred  on  the  8th  of  October,  after  he  had  advanced  as  far 
as  Charlotte,  in  North  Carolina.  There  he  learned  that  Major  Ferguson, 
oue  of  his  best  partisan  officers,  had  been  killed,  and  his  command  de- 


OPERATIONS   LEADING   TO  YORKTOWN. 

stroyed,  or  taken,  at  King's  Mountain,  by  backwoodsmen,  under  Williams, 
Shelby,  Campbell,  and  other  militia  colonels.  This  defeat  operated  to 
such  a  degree  in  depressing  the  spirits  of  the  Loyalists  in  that  section 
of  the  country,  and  encouraging  the  friends  of  America,  or  Whigs,  that 
Cornwallis  determined  to  fall  back  to  South  Carolina  again,  where  lie 
took  up  a  position  at  Wynnsborough,  some  twenty-five  miles  west  of 
Camden. 

The  King's  Mountain  affair,  however,  had  only  postponed  the  occu 
pation  of  North  Carolina  until  re-enforcements  could  reach  the  British 
c&mp.  Leslie  was  ordered  down  to  Charleston  from  Portsmouth,  and  in 
January,  1781,  he  joined  Cornwallis.  To  replace  his  force  in  the  Chesa 
peake,  Clinton,  although  he  could  "ill  spare  it,"  as  he  wrote,  sent  Arnold, 
December  llth,  with  another  expedition,  to  Portsmouth,  under  the  same 
directions  that  Leslie  lay,  to  co-operate  with  the  army  under  Cornwallis.1 
The  original  design  was  to  be  prosecuted,  and  opinions  were  expressed 
also  as  to  carrying  the  war  beyond  into  Virginia.  Thus  Clinton,  writing 
to  Cornwallis,  November  6th,  says:  "If  my  wishes  are  fulfilled  they  are 
that  you  may  establish  a  post  at  Ilillsborough,  feed  it  from  Cross  Creek 
[Fayetteville],  and  be  able  to  keep  that  of  Portsmouth.  A  few  troops 
will  do  it,  and  carry  on  desultory  expeditions  in  Chesapeake,  till  more 
solid  operations  can  take  place,  of  which  I  fear  there  is  no  prospect  with 
out  we  are  considerably  re-enforced.  .  .  .  Operations  in  Chesapeake  are 
but  of  two  sorts:  solid  operations  with  a  fighting  army,  to  call  forth  our 
friends  and  support  them;  or  a  post,  such  as  Portsmouth,  carrying  on  des 
ultory  expeditions,  stopping  up  in  a  great  measure  the  Chesapeake,  and,  by 
commanding  James  River,  prevent  the  enemy  from  forming  any  consid 
erable  depots  upon  it,  or  moving  in  any  force  to  the  southward  of  it." 
These  opinions  bear  upon  subsequent  operations  in  Virginia. 

Re-enforced  by  Leslie,  Cornwallis  once  more,  in  January,  1781,  set  out 
for  North  Carolina.  His  force,  on  the  15th  of  that  month,  numbered,  all 
told,  about  three  thousand  four  hundred,  officers  and  men  ;  by  the  returns, 
three  thousand  two  hundred  arid  twenty-four  were  rank  and  file.  Greene, 


1   Clinton  to  Cornwallis,  New  York,  December  13i/t,  1780. 

"Wishing,  however,  to  give  your  Lordship's  operations  in  North  Carolina  every 
assistance  in  my  power,  though  I  can  ill  spare  it,  I  have  sent  another  expedition  into 
the  Chesapeake,  under  the  orders  of  Brigadier -general  Arnold,  Lieutenant- colonels 
Dundas  and  Simcoe.  ...  As  I  have  always  said,  I  think  your  Lordship's  movements  to 
the  southward  most  important,  and,  as  I  have  ever  done,  so  I  will  give  them  all  the 
assistance  I  can." — Clintons  Answer. 


24  THE   YORKTOWN   CAMPAIGN. 

who  was  watching  the  enemy  from  the  banks  of  the  Pedee,  could  muster 
scarcely  fifteen  hundred  Continentals  and  six  hundred  militia.  Could 
Corn  wall  is  strike  him  and  win  another  Camden,  British  interests  might 
become  securely  rooted  in  all  the  South.  But,  just  at  the  moment  of  his 
advance  the  second  time,  he  met  with  a  second  disaster.  Morgan,  whom 
Greene  had  detached  far  to  his  right  on  the  South  Carolina  border,  won, 
on  the  17th  of  January,  the  brilliant  victory  at  Cowpens  over  Tarleton, 
Cornwallis's  dashing  cavalry  leader,  by  which  the  enemy  suffered  a  loss, 
in  casualties  and  prisoners,  of  very  nearly  eight  hundred  men.  This  was 
a  crippling  blow — quite  enough  to  cause  a  cautious  general  to  halt;  but 
Cornwallis,  understanding  perfectly  that  another  retreat,  under  the  cir 
cumstances,  would  amount  to  an  admission  of  fear  and  weakness  on  his 
part,  and  still  further  discourage  loyalty  where  he  had  come  to  revive  it, 
promptly  determined  to  go  on.  His  own  words  at  this  crisis  are  impor 
tant  :  "  My  plan  for  the  winter's  campaign,"  he  wrote  to  Germaine,  "  was 
to  penetrate  into  North  Carolina,  leaving  South  Carolina  in  security 
against  any  probable  attack  in  my  absence.  Lord  Rawdon  with  a  consid 
erable  body  of  troops  had  charge  of  the  defensive,  and  I  proceeded  about 
the  middle  of  January  upon  the  offensive  operations.  ...  I  hoped  by  rapid 
marches  to  get  between  General  Greene  and  Virginia,  and  by  that  means 
force  him  to  tight  without  receiving  any  re-enforcement  from  that  prov 
ince  ;  or,  failing  of  that,  to  oblige  him  to  quit  North  Carolina  with  pre 
cipitation,  and  thereby  encourage  our  friends  to  make  good  their  prom 
ises  of  a  general  rising  to  assist  me  in  establishing  his  Majesty's  govern 
ment.  The  unfortunate  affair  of  the  17th  of  January  [Cowpens]  was  a 
very  unexpected  and  severe  blow ;  for,  besides  reputation,  our  loss  did  not 
fall  short  of  six  hundred  men.  However,  being  thoroughly  sensible  that 
'defensive  measures  would  be  certain  ruin  to  the  affairs  of  Great  Britain 
in  the  Southern  Colonies,  this  event  did  not  deter  me  from  prosecuting 
the  original  plan."1  So,  despite  Cowpens,  Cornwallis,  in  the  last  days  of 
January,  put  all  his  troops  in  light  marching  order,  burnt  his  baggage, 
and  pushed  forward  through  drenching  rains  to  overtake  both  Greene 
and  Morgan,  and  occupy  North  Carolina. 

This  move  is  interesting,  for  it  leads  indirectly  to  Yorktown.  No  one 
could  then  have  dreamed  that  Cornwallis  at  the  Catawba,  and  Washing 
ton  upon  the  Hudson,  seven  hundred  miles  apart,  each  looking  at  different 
objective  points,  would  within  eight  months  meet  face  to  face  midway 
down  the  coast  and  settle  the  issue.  Cornwallis,  certainly,  did  not  dream 

1  "Cornwallis  Correspondence,''  Ross,  vol.  i.,  p.  516. 


OPERATIONS   LEADING   TO   YOKKTOWN. 


25 


GKNMCKAJ,    NATHANIEL    GREENE. 


of  it,  and  jet  it  was  he  who  set  the  events  in  motion  that  culminated  in 
his  overthrow.  The  Yorktown  Campaign  began  with  him,  when  he 
started  out  to  crush  Greene  and  reduce  North  Carolina  to  subjection. 
That  was  its  first  stage. 

Into  the  details  of  these  earlier 
movements  it  is  not  intended  to  enter 
here.  Greene,  too  weak  to  meet  the 
enemy,  retreated  rapidly.  The  enemy 
followed  as  rapidly.  Night  and  day 
the  chase  was  continued  through  North 
Carolina,  until  Greene  skilfully  saved 
himself  at  the  Virginia  line  by  put 
ting  the  river  Dan  between  his  troops 
and  their  pursuers.  Cornwallis,  hav 
ing  thus  accomplished  one  object  of 
his  invasion  in  driving  Greene  out  of 
the  State,  anticipated  the  restoration 
of  the  King's  authority  within  its  lim 

its.  But  once  more  "a  capital  misfortune"  under  the  disguise  of  a 
victory  befell  him,  and  again  his  expectations  failed  of  realization. 
Greene,  receiving  re-enforcements,  recrossed  the  Dan  and  offered  the 

/  O 

enemy  battle  at  Guilford  Court  House,  on  the  15th  of  March.  Corn 
wallis  gladly  seized  the  opportunity,  in  the  hope  of  breaking  up  Greene's 
force  and  opening  the  way  into  Virginia,  which  would  be  his  next  object, 
and  the  well-known  battle  at  Guilford  followed.  It  was  an  obstinate  con 
test,  resulting  in  the  retreat  of  the  American  troops.  But  it  was  not  a 
Camden  defeat  for  them.  In  this  fact  lay  very  material  consequences. 
So  great  a  loss  had  the  British  sustained,  both  in  officers  and  men,  that 
their  nominal  advantages  could  not  be  pursued.  On  the  contrary,  their 
victory  had  entailed  upon  them  the  positive  effects  of  a  defeat.  It  proved 
too  costly  —  too  great  a  drain  upon  their  effective  strength  to  permit  them 
even  to  remain  where  they  were.  Cornwallis,  indeed,  established  himself 
at  Ilillsborough,  as  contemplated  in  his  plan,  raised  the  royal  standard, 
and  issued  proclamations  calling  upon  the  King's  true  subjects  to  assert 
themselves,  and  offering  them  protection.  But  hardly  had  lie  assumed 
this  attitude  of  a  conqueror  and  deliverer  before  we  lind  him  obliged  to 
retire  from  the  heart  of  the  State  to  the  coast,  for  the  avowed  purpose  of 
recruiting  and  refitting  his  exhausted  and  sadly  diminished  force.  Ilills 
borough  he  exchanged  for  Wilmington,  at  the  seaboard,  which  he  reached 
»»n  the  7th  of  April,  and  the  defeated  Greene  was  left  practically  master 


Of   TH£ 

UNIVERSITY 


26  THE  YORKTOWN  CAMPAIGN. 

of  the  situation,  with  South  Carolina  open  to  his  advance.  The  move  to 
Wilmington  was  a  clear  admission  that,  for  the  time  being,  the  scheme  of 
reducing  North  Carolina  had  failed. 

At  Wilmington,  now,  the  Southern  invasion  develops  a  new  phase: 
we  reach  the  second  and  vital  step  that  led  Cornwallis  to  Yorktown. 

As  the  march  into  North  Carolina  contemplated  no  such  result  as  a 
retirement  to  the  seaboard,  and  as  the  reduction  of  that  State  had  been 
declared  indispensable  for  the  security  of  all  below  it,  it  lay  with  Corn 
wallis  either  to  re-enforce  himself,  were  that  possible,  from  Charleston 
and  return  to  Ilillsborough,  or  fall  back  once  more  to  his  base  in  South 
Carolina.  This  was  the  alternative,  if  the  original  scheme  was  to  be  ad 
hered  to.  But  at  Wilmington,  under  the  altered  condition  of  things, 
Cornwallis  changed  his  plan,  and,  abandoning  the  Carolinas  for  the  pres 
ent,  decided  to  move  directly  into  Virginia,  unite  with  Phillips  and  Ar 
nold,  and  there  renew  operations  with  the  Chesapeake  as  his  base.  What 
these  operations  would  be  he  did  not  then  know  himself. 

The  success  of  the  entire  Southern  scheme  hinged  upon  this  move  to 
Virginia,  and  its  merits  have  been  discussed  both  by  the  principal  actors 
in  the  scenes,  and  by  subsequent  military  and  historical  writers.  Some 
important  points  were  involved.  Why  did  not  Cornwallis  retire  from 
North  to  South  Carolina  after  Guilford  Court  House!;  Why  not  even 
after  reaching  Wilmington  1  Why  did  he  march  to  Virginia?  Why,  at 
all  events,  without  the  previous  approval  of  his  commander-in-chief '( 
The  change  was  a  radical  one,  and  the  responsibility  proportionately 
great.  For  all  these  questions,  however,  Cornwallis  had  apparently  satis 
factory  replies,  and  in  his  final  answer  to  Clinton,  in  the  controversy 
which  arose  between  them  after  the  war,  he  makes  a  ready  and  pointed 
defence.  Speaking  of  his  move  to  Virginia,  he  says :  "  I  came  to  this  res 
olution  principally  for  the  following  reasons:  I  could  not  remain  at  AVil- 
mington,  lest  General  Greene  should  succeed  against  Lord  llawdon  [who 
was  left  in  command  in  South  Carolina],  and,  by  returning  to  North  Caro 
lina,  have  it  in  his  power  to  cut  off  every  means  of  saving  my  small 
corps,  except  that  disgraceful  one  of  an  embarkation,  with  the  loss  of  the 
cavalry  and  every  horse  in  the  army.  From  the  shortness  of  Lord  Raw- 
don's  stock  of  provisions  and  the  great  distance  from  Wilmington  to 
Camden,  it  appeared  impossible  that  any  direct  move  of  mine  could  afford 
him  the  least  prospect  of  relief.  In  the  attempt,  in  case  of  a  misfortune 
to  him,  the  safety  of  my  own  corps  might  have  been  endangered  ;  or,  if 
he  extricated  himself,  the  force  in  South  Carolina,  when  assembled,  was, 
in  my  opinion,  sufficient  to  secure  what  was  valuable  to  us,  and  capable  of 


OPERATIONS   LEADING   TO   YORKTOWN. 


27 


MAP    SHOWING    THE    ROUTE    AND    OPERATIONS    OF    CORNWALLIS    IN    THE    SOUTH.       [FROM    FADKN'S    MAP, 

LONDON,   1787.] 

defence  in  that  province.  I  was  likewise  influenced  by  having  just  re 
ceived  an  account  from  Charleston  of  the  arrival  of  a  frigate  with  de 
spatches  from  the  commander-in-chief,  the  substance  of  which,  then  trans 
mitted  to  rne,  M'as  that  General  Phillips  had  been  detached  to  the  Chesa 
peake  and  put  under  my  orders,  which  induced  me  to  hope  that  solid 
operations  might  be  adopted  in  that  quarter;  and  I  was  finally  persuaded 
that,  until  Virginia  was  reduced,  we  could  not  hold  the  more  southern 


r-'S  THE   YORKTOWN   CAMPAIGN. 

provinces,  and  that  after  its  reduction  they  would  fall  without  much 
difficulty." 

Assuming  thus  the  entire  responsibility,  and  conscious  that  he  would 
have  at  least  the  approval  of  the  home  ministry,  with  whom  he  was  a 
favorite,  Cornwallis  marched  from  "Wilmington  on  the  25th  of  April,  and 
on  the  20th  of  May  arrived  at  Petersburg,  Virginia,  where  a  junction  was 
effected  with  the  force  under  General  Phillips.  Phillips  himself  had  un 
fortunately  fallen  a  victim  to  a  fever  a  few  days  before. 

Sir  Henry  Clinton  never  approved  of  this  move,  pronouncing  it  con 
trary  to  the  spirit  of  his  instructions,  which  required  Cornwallis  to  hold 
and  secure  South  Carolina.  By  entering  Virginia  he  was  abandoning  it. 
''Had  you  intimated  the  probability  of  your  intention,"  wrote  Clinton  to 
Cornwallis,  in  May,  "I  should  certainly  have  endeavored  to  have  stopped 
you,  as  I  did  then  as  well  as  now  consider  such  a  move  likely  to  be  dan 
gerous  to  our  interests  in  the  southern  colonies."  And  thirteen  years  later, 
when  Clinton  was  answering  the  criticisms  of  the  historian  Stedman,  he 
again  insisted  that  "  Cornwallis  had  been  ordered  and  had  promised,  in 
case  of  failure  in  Xorth  Carolina,  to  fall  back  on  South  Carolina  and  se 
cure  it."  The  two  generals  continued  the  controversy  with  some  acri 
mony,  but  Cornwallis  had  the  moral  support  of  the  home  government, 
and  the  commander-in-chief  actually  found  himself  obliged  to  accommo 
date  his  own  future  plans  to  this  movement  of  his  subordinate. 


CORNWALLIS  AND  LAFAYETTE   IN  VIRGINIA.  29 


CHAPTER   III. 

CORXWALLIS   AND   LAFAYETTE    IN   VIRGINIA. 

INTERESTING  scenes,  preliminary  to  the  grand  result,  now  open  in 
Virginia. 

Cornwallis  had  at  last  reached  the  State  whose  control,  from  its  cen 
tral  position,  he  believed  would  be  followed  by  the  control  of  all  America. 
Precisely  how  this  coveted  result  was  to  be  brought  about  in  the  case  of 
the  States  to  the  northward  does  not  appear.  As  to  the  reduction  of  Vir 
ginia,  however,  his  Lordship  had  some  definite  ideas.  He  would  have  had 
Clinton  abandon  New  York,  if  necessary,  concentrate  all  available  forces 
in  the  Chesapeake,  and,  moving  up  the  large  navigable  rivers,  occupy  the 
territory,  compel  the  submission  of  the  inhabitants,  and  establish  the  royal 
authority.  The  scheme  contemplated  a  previous  decisive  victory  over 
any  American  army  brought  to  the  defence  of  the  State.  It  presupposed, 
also,  the  existence  of  a  considerable  Tory  element  in  the  population, 
which,  however,  did  not  exist  in  Virginia.  The  State  could  have  been 
held  only  by  sheer  conquest,  in  which  case  it  could  scarcely  have  become 
a  satisfactory  central  base  of  operations.  Any  temporary  advantage  gain 
ed  there  would  doubtless  have  been  offset  by  the  moral  effect  of  the  aban 
donment  of  the  Northern  field.  That  step  in  the  eyes  both  of  America 
and  Europe  would  have  meant  failure  in  the  strong  Colonies,  instead  of  a 
change  of  base.  Clinton,  the  commander-in-chief,  seems  to  have  thor 
oughly  appreciated  this  when  he  declined  to  entertain  Cornwallis's  sug 
gestion.  Indeed,  Clinton,  although  charged  sometimes  with  indecision 
and  incompetency,  understood  the  American  situation  quite  as  clearly  as 
Cornwallis  or  the  home  government;  and  in  asking  for  a  re-enforcement 
of  ten  thousand  men  and  the  assurance  of  a  continued  naval  supremacy 
for  the  operations  of  1781,  he  but  represented,  like  a  faithful  head,  the 
true  necessities  of  the  case.  England's  force  in  America  that  year  was 
inadequate  for  her  purposes. 

That  the  reduction  of  Virginia  would  have  been  followed  by  the  ap 
parent  submission  of  the  States  below  is  possible.  A  Continental  force 


30  THE  YOKKTOWN  CAMPAIGN. 

might  have  found  it  difficult  to  subsist  and  replenish  losses,  cut  off  from 
Virginia  and  the  resources  of  the  States  above.1  Both  sides  certainly  re 
garded  the  field  as  a  most  important  one,  and  the  events  transpiring  there 
were  closely  and  anxiously  watched. 

When  Cornwallis  entered  the  State  he  found  for  his  antagonist  the 
youthful  Lafayette — a  name  America  delights  to  honor.  His  services  in 
the  Revolution  are  a  familiar  record ;  but  above  these  stands  the  unalloy 
ed  motive,  the  noble  spirit,  that  brought  him  here.  In  1776,  then  nine 
teen  years  of  age,  he  was  stationed  on  duty  at  Metz  as  an  officer  in  the 
French  army;  and  it  was  there  that  he  first  understood  the  merits  of  the 
American  struggle.  "It  happened  at  this  time,"  says  President  Sparks, 
"that  the  Duke  of  Gloucester,  brother  to  the  King  of  England,  was  at 
Metz,  and  a  dinner  was  given  to  him  by  the  commandant  of  that  place. 
Several  officers  were  invited,  and  among  others  Lafayette.  Despatches 
had  just  been  received  by  the  duke  from  England,  and  he  made  their 
contents  the  topic  of  conversation;  they  related  to  American  affairs — the 
recent  declaration  of  independence,  the  resistance  of  the  Colonists,  and 
the  strong  measures  adopted  by  the  ministry  to  crush  the  rebellion.  The 
details  were  new  to  Lafayette;  he  listened  with  eagerness  to  the  conver 
sation,  and  prolonged  it  by  asking -questions  of  the  duke.  His  curiosity 
was  deeply  excited  by  what  he  heard,  and  the  idea  of  a  people  fighting 
for  liberty  had  a  strong  influence  upon  his  imagination.  The  cause  seem 
ed  to  him  just  and  noble  from  the  representations  of  the  duke  himself, 
and  before  he  left  the  table  the  thought  came  into  his  head  that  he  would 
go  to  America,  and  offer  his  services  to  a  people  who  were  struggling  for 
freedom  and  independence.  From  that  hour  he  could  think  of  nothing 
but  this  chivalrous  enterprise." 

As  a  youth  of  noble  birth  and  large  fortune,  and  "allied  to  one  of 
the  first  families  of  the  court,"  his  intention  to  engage  in  the  American 
contest  became  known  to  the  French  government,  and  his  departure  was 
prohibited.  But,  after  failing  in  one  attempt,  he  succeeded  in  quitting 
France  in  the  disguise  of  a  courier,  and,  with  De  Kalb  and  other  foreign 
officers,  sailed  for  this  country  from  the  Spanish  port  of  Passage,  in  April, 
1777.  After  a  seven-weeks'  voyage  he  reached  Georgetown,  South  Caro 
lina,  on  June  15th,  and  Charleston  on  the  19th,  where  he  procured  horses 


1  In  1780  and  1781  equipments,  clothing,  and  ammunition  for  the  Southern  troops 
could  be  obtained  only  from  Philadelphia  and  the  scanty  depots  from  which  Washing 
ton's  army  in  the  Highlands  was  supplied. 


COKNWALLIS  AND   LAFAYETTE   IN    VIRGINIA. 


31 


for  himself  and  companions  to  proceed  to  Philadelphia.  Riding  nearly 
nine  hundred  miles,  he  reached  the  city  in  the  course  of  a  month,  and 
sought  admission  to  the  American  army. 

Congress  at  first  denied  Lafayette's  application,  as  coming  from  one  of 
the  increasing  number  of  foreigners  who  expected  commissions;  but  he 
immediately  represented 
that  he  wished  to  offer 
himself  simply  as  a  vol 
unteer  without  pay,  when 
that  body,  appreciating  his 
devotion  and  enthusiasm 
in  their  cause,  resolved  on 
the  31st  of  July  that  "his 
services  be  accepted,  and 
that  in  consideration  of 
his  zeal,  illustrious  fam 
ily  and  connections,  he 
have  the  rank  and  com 
mission  of  major-general 
in  the  Army  of  the 
United  States."  Wash 
ington,  marching  soon  af 
ter  through  Philadelphia 
to  oppose  the  enemy  coin 
ing  np  from  the  head  of 
the  Chesapeake,  met  La 
fayette  for  the  first  time 
at  that  city,  complimented 
him  upon  "his  zeal  and  his  sacrifices,"  and  invited  him  to  make  his 
home  at  his  own  head -quarters.  The  young  marquis  gladly  accepted 
the  flattering  invitation,  and  three  weeks  later  we  find  him  writing  to  his 
wife  as  follows,  in  regard  to  the  commander-in-chief :  "This  excellent 
man,  whose  talents  and  virtues  I  admired,  and  whom  I  have  learned  to 
revere  as  I  know  him  better,  has  now  become  my  intimate  friend  ;  his 
affectionate  interest  in  me  instantly  won  my  heart,  I  am  established  in 
his  house,  and  we  live  together  like  two  attached  brothers,  with  mutual 
confidence  and  cordiality.  This  friendship  renders  me  as  happy  as  I  can 
possibly  be  in  this  country."  ' 


THE    MARQUIS    DE    LAFAYETTE.       [FROM    THE    ENGRAVINC. 
PUBLISHED    BY    HIS    FAMILY.] 


"At  every  period  of  life,  and  above  all,  in  his  youtli,  Lafayette  displayed  a  cold  and 


32  THE    YORKTOWN   CAMPAIGN. 

The  beautiful  statue  of  Lafayette,  at  the  lower  end  of  Union  Square, 
in  New  York  City,  represents  him  in  buoyant  attitude,  offering  his  ser 
vices  to  America.  The  most  valuable  services  he  rendered  in  the  field 
were  those  rendered  here  in  Virginia.  At  Brandywine,  his  first  engage 
ment,  in  1777,  he  fought  bravely  as  a  volunteer,  and  received  a  wound. 
He  shared  the  hardships  of  the  army  at  Valley  Forge ;  figured  at  Mon- 
mouth  and  in  Rhode  Island  in  1778 ;  returned  to  France  in  1779,  where 
his  influence  was  exerted  in  obtaining  the  first  French  re-enforcements  for 
America  under  Roehambean ;  and  in  1780,  comino;  a^ain  to  the  United 

*  '  O          O 

States,  he  was  placed  at  the  head  of  Washington's  select  body  of  troops, 
known  as  the  corps  of  Light  Infantry.  Finally,  early  in  1781  he  appears 
in  Virginia  to  be  constantly  active  in  an  independent  command  until  the 
investment  of  Yorktown. 

What  took  this  now  popular  and  trusted  officer  to  the  southward  was 
the  attention  paid  by  the  enemy  to  the  Chesapeake.  Clinton,  as  we  have 
seen,  had  sent  thither  the  three  expeditions  under  Leslie,  Arnold,  and 
Phillips.  The  two  latter  alone  operated  up  the  James  as  far  as  Rich 
mond.  Arnold  sailed  from  New  York  on  the  16th  of  December,  1780, 
and  on  the  3d  of  January  anchored  off  Jamestown  Island.  Two  days 
later  he  entered  and  plundered  Richmond,  and  on  the  7th  withdrew  to 
take  up  a  fortified  position  at  Portsmouth.  His  movements  were  care 
fully  watched  by  Washington,  who,  upon  hearing  of  his  whereabouts, 
organized  a  land  and  naval  expedition  to  check  the  traitor's  inroads,  and, 
if  possible,  effect  his  capture.  Major-general  Baron  Steuben  was  then  in 
Virginia, with  Generals  Muhlenberg,Weedon, Nelson,  and  others;  but  their 
forces  being  untrained  militia,  the  commander-in-chief  considered  it  neces 
sary  to  send  to  their  assistance  a  body  of  Continentals  from  his  own  army. 
The  detachment  was  composed  of  twelve  hundred  of  his  best  soldiers — 
Light  Infantry — and  the  command  lie  gave  to  Lafayette.  He  also  per 
suaded  Rochambeau  to  despatch  the  small  French  fleet  from  Newport, 
then  under  Monsieur  Destouches,  with  a  few  troops,  to  blockade  Arnold 
by  sea,  while  Lafayette  should  compel  his  surrender  with  the  land-forces. 

But  this  expedition  failed  of  its  object.  The  English  fleet,  under  Ar- 
buthnot,  intercepted  the  French  ships  near  the  entrance  to  the  Chesa- 

grave  exterior,  which  sometimes  gave  to  his  demeanor  an  air  of  timidity  and  embarrass 
ment  which  did  not  really  belong  to  him.  His  reserved  manners  and  his  silent  dispo 
sition  presented  a  singular  contrast  to  the  petulance,  the  levity,  and  the  ostentatious 
loquacity  of  persons  of  his  own  age ;  but,  under  this  exterior,  to  all  appearances  so 
phlegmatic,  he  concealed  the  most  active  mind,  the  most  determined  character,  and  the 
most  enthusiastic  spirit." — Memoirs  of  Count  Segur,  vol.  i.,  p.  106. 


COKNWALLIS  AND  LAFAYETTE   IN  VIRGINIA.  33 

pcakc,  where,  on  March  IGth,  a  naval  action  occurred,  with  eight  sail  of 
the  line  on  a  side,  in  which  each  admiral  claimed  the  victory.  As  Des- 
touches,  however,  could  not  co-operate  with  Lafayette  and  returned  to 
Newport,  the  material  advantage  remained  with  the  British.  Lafayette 
had  in  the  mean  time  marched  with  all  speed  to  the  head  of  the  Chesa 
peake  and  embarked  for  Annapolis.  Leaving  his  troops  there  to  proceed 
down  the  bay  in  French  frigates  which  he  supposed  Destouches  could 
send  up,  he  set  out  in  advance  with  some  officers  in  an  open  boat,  made 
his  way  to  Williamsburg,  on  the  Virginia  peninsula,  and  then  on  the  19th 
across  tire  James  to  Suffolk,  where  General  Muhlenberg  was  guarding  the 
roads  leading  out  of  Portsmouth.  A  reconnoissance  was  made  toward  the 
latter  place  preparatory  to  a  close  investment  of  Arnold's  position,  when 
word  came  of  the  naval  failure,  and  Lafayette  returned  to  Annapolis,  in 
order  to  rejoin  Washington's  army,  as  required  by  his  chief. 

At  the  head  of  the  Elk,  however,  on  his  march  northward,  Lafayette 
received  new  and  important  instructions  from  the  commander-in-chief, 
dated  April  6th.  It  had  been  ascertained  that  Clinton  had  despatched 
General  Phillips — that  excellent  officer  who  had  surrendered  with  Bur- 
goyne  —  with  another  expedition  to  take  command  in  the  Chesapeake, 
whose  force  combined  with  Arnold's  would  number  something  over  three 
thousand  men.  As  this  indicated  an  intention  on  the  part  of  the  enemy 
to  prosecute  operations  in  Virginia  on  a  larger  scale  than  heretofore, 
either  in  conjunction  with  Cornwallis  or  separately,  it  was  the  unanimous 
opinion  of  Washington  and  his  general  officers  that  Lafayette,  instead  of 
returning  north,  should  immediately  turn  his  detachment  southward  again, 
and  place  himself  under  the  orders  of  General  Greene,  who  needed  every 
possible  assistance.  Lafayette  accordingly  faced  about  and  marched  to 
Baltimore,  where  he  borrowed  two  thousand  pounds  from  the  merchants 
with  which  to  buy  linen,  shoes,  and  hats  for  his  soldiers,  who  had  marched 
from  the  North  in  winter  clothing.  The  ladies  of  the  city  gave  a  ball  in 
honor  of  the  patriotic  young  French  general,  and  offered  to  make  up  the 
shirts  and  blouses  for  his  soldiers.  To  the  troops  themselves,  it  seems, 
nearly  all  of  whom  had  been  detached  from  the  New  England  regiments, 
the  prospect  of  service  in  the  distant  South  was  extremely  repugnant,  and 
some  desertions  occurred.  After  hanging  one  deserter  and  dismissing  an- 

o        o  o 

other,  Lafayette  issued  an  order  announcing  that  the  detachment  was  set 
ting  out  on  an  arduous  and  dangerous  campaign,  in  which  a  superior  ene 
my  was  to  be  met  and  fought  under  difficulties  of  every  sort,  and  that  the 
general,  on  his  part,  was  determined  to  encounter  them ;  but  that  if  any 
of  the  soldiers  were  inclined  to  abandon  him  they  need  not  fear  the  crime 

3 


34  THE  YORKTOWN  CAMPAIGN. 

and  danger  of  desertion,  as  every  one  who  should  apply  to  head-quarters 
for  a  pass  to  join  their  corps  in  the  North  could  obtain  it  immediately. 
From  that  hour,  as  Lafayette  states  in  his  "  Memoirs,"  "  all  desertions 
ceased,"  and  not  one  of  his  men  would  leave  him.  The  corps  was  com 
posed  of  three  veteran  light  infantry  battalions,  under  Colonel  Vose,  of 
Massachusetts;  Lieutenant-colonel  Gimat,  a  French  officer,  late  aid  to  La 
fayette  ;  and  Lieutenant-colonel  Barber,  of  New  Jersey  ;  and  its  conduct 
during  the  campaign  won  the  praise  and  confidence  of  its  leader. 

Expecting  that  Phillips  and  Arnold  would  speedily  occupy  the  line 
of  the  James  and  secure  Richmond,  Lafayette,  starting  from  Baltimore 
on  the  19th  of  April,  hastened  to  reach  that  place  before  them.  Leaving 
his  tents  and  artillery  to  follow,  he  impressed  wagons  and  horses,  and 
making  forced  marches  by  way  of  Alexandria,  Fredericksburg,  and  Bowl 
ing  Green,  arrived  at  Richmond  on  the  evening  of  the  29th,  a  few  hours 
in  advance  of  the  enemy.1  Phillips  made  his  appearance  opposite  the 
town  on  the  following  morning.  Surprised  at  Lafayette's  celerity,  he 
fell  down  the  river  again  about  as  far  as  Jamestown  Island;  but  receiv 
ing  word  from  Cornwallis,  on  the  7th  of  May,  that  he  proposed  to  march 
into  Virginia  and  unite  with  Phillips  at  Petersburg,  the  latter  returned 
to  that  place  on  the  10th.  Lafayette  endeavored  to  prevent  or  delay 

1  Steuben,  who  with  militia  was  not  strong  enough  to  oppose  Phillips,  sent  his  aid, 
Captain  North,  to  Lafayette  to  represent  the  situation.  North  found  the  marquis  at 
Bowling  Green,  who  replied  to  the  baron  as  follows: 

"Bowling  Green  Tavern,  April  27tb,  1TS1. 

"DEAR  BARON, — .  .  .  I  feel  for  you,  my  dear  sir,  and  easily  imagine  that,  with  your 
inferiority,  you  cannot  make  such  a  resistance  as  you  would  wish.  From  what  Captain 
North  says,  I  am  inclined  to  believe  that  by  this  time  you  are  at  Chesterfield  Court 
House. 

"Richmond  must  be  now  the  object  for  both  parties— your  point  of  retreat  at  the 
Court  House  is  the  more  judicious,  as  it  enables  us  to  form  a  junction.  As  long  as  we 
can  keep  the  ferry  at  Richmond,  we  might  look  at  that  place.  But  the  falls  being  a 
natural  protection  to  our  boats,  I  think  every  boat  that  can  be  collected  in  the  river 
ought  to  rendezvous  at  the  lowest  crossing-place  above  the  falls.  .  .  .  This  detachment 
will  be  at  Richmond  or  "West ham  the  day  after  to-morrow,  if  the  rain  don't  prevent 
it — the  artillery  and  every  other  apparatus  is  far  behind.  As  soon  as  I  arrive  at  Rich 
mond  I  will  write  to  you  more  particularly.  But  as  far  as  I  may  judge  for  the  pres 
ent  (taking  it  for  granted  that  you  are  now  at  the  Court  House),  the  point  above  the 
falls  must  be  considered  by  us  as  the  most  proper  point  to  cross  the  river,  and  I 
heartily  wish  you  may  not  be  dislodged  from  the  Court  House  before  the  detach 
ment  arrives.  .  .  . 

"  Very  affectionately,  and  with  great  regard,  I  have  the  honor  to  be,  dear  Baron, 

"Your  most  obedient  servant, 

"  LAFAYETTE." 

[From  the  "Gates  MS.  Papery"  N.  Y.  Hiet.  Soc.] 


CORNWALLIS   AND   LAFAYETTE   IN  VIRGINIA.  35 

the  junction  of  these  forces  by  occupying  Petersburg  first,  but  did  not 
succeed,  and  on  the  20th,  as  already  stated,  the  junction  was  effected. 

Lafayette,  who  was  at  Richmond  when  Cornwallis  readied  Petersburg, 
being  now  within  Greene's  department,  had  received  orders  from  that 
general  to  halt  and  take  command  of  all  troops  in  Virginia,  and  defend 
the  State.1  To  this  one  object,  from  this  time  forth,  he  directed  his  entire 
attention ;  and  his  first  anxiety  was  to  make  himself  stronger.  The  nu 
cleus  of  his  force  was  his  own  detachment  from  the  Northern  army. 
Brigadier-generals  Muhlen berg  and  Weedon,  Virginia  Continental  officers, 
and  Generals  Nelson,  Stevens,  and  Lawson,  State  brigadiers,  were  then,  or 
recently  had  been,  in  different  parts  of  the  field  with  small  and  fluctuating 
bodies  of  militia;  while  Major-general  Steuben,  who  had  come  south  with 
Greene,  was  endeavoring  to  organize  regiments  for  the  Virginia  line  from 
recruits  enlisted  for  eighteen  months.  In  addition,  what  was  to  prove  a 
most  important  acquisition,  General  Wayne  was  daily  expected  to  report 
with  the  Pennsylvania  line  to  Lafayette,  and  serve  with  him  until  further 
orders  from  Greene.  But  all  these  troops,  could  they  have  been  united  in 
time,  would  still  have  been  unable,  from  the  inexperience  of  a  large  pro 
portion  of  them,  to  resist  the  progress  of  the  enemy;  and  Lafayette  ap 
plied  in  every  direction  for  more  men  and  supplies.  lie  wrote  to  Jeffer 
son,  the  retiring  governor,  later  to  Nelson,  the  new  governor,  to  Morgan 
at  Winchester,  to  Weedon  at  Fredericksburg,  and  to  others,  to  exert  them 
selves  in  the  emergency.  The  famous  Morgan,  who  was  at  home  recruit 
ing  his  health  after  Cowpens,  was  especially  urged  to  lend  his  help. 
"  Our  regular  force,"  wrote  Lafayette  to  him  from  Richmond,  May  21st, 
"is  near  one  thousand  ;  our  militia  are  not  very  strong  upon  the  returns, 
and  much  weaker  in  the  field.  We  have  not  a  hundred  riflemen,  and  are 
in  the  greatest  need  of  arms.  The  Pennsylvanians  were  long  ago  to  join 
ns,  and  their  march  has  been  deferred  from  day  to  day;  no  official  account 
of  them,  nor  of  a  battalion  of  Maryland  recruits.  Under  these  circum 
stances,  my  dear  sir,  I  do  very  much  want  your  assistance,  and  beg  leave 
to  request  it,  both  as  a  lover  of  public  welfare  and  as  a  private  friend  of 

1  "The  moment  I  got  intelligence  that  Lord  Cornwallis  was  moving  northerly,  I 
gave  orders  for  the  marquis  to  halt  and  take  the  command  of  Virginia,  and  to  halt  the 
Pennsylvania  line  and  all  the  Virginia  drafts." — Greene  to  Jefferson.  GREENE'S  Greene, 
vol.  iii.,  p.  556. 

In  a  letter  to  Steuben  from  Wilton,  a  few  miles  below  Richmond,  May  17th,  1781, 
Lafayette  writes :  "  General  Greene  directs  that  my  detachment  be  stationed  in  Vir 
ginia,  where  I  am  to  take  command  of  the  troops.  What  necessity  had  obliged  me  to 
do  was  at  the  same  time  consistent  with  the  arrangements  of  the  general.'' — Gates  MS. 


36 


THE   YORKTOWN  CAMPAIGN. 


GENERAL    DANIEL    MORGAN. 


yours.  I  ever  had  a  great  esteem  for  riflemen,  and  have  done  my  best 
to  see  them  much  employed  in  our  armies.  But  in  this  little  corps  they 

are  particularly  wanting.  Your  in 
fluence  can  do  more  than  orders 
from  the  Executive.  Permit  me, 
therefore,  my  dear  sir,  entirely  to 
depend  on  your  exertions."  And 
to  this  he  added  that  his  own  pres 
ence  in  camp  would  alone  be  a 
"very  great  re-enforcement.'"  The 
Virginia  House  of  Delegates  and 
Governor  Jefferson  seconded  this 
appeal  to  Morgan.  But  Morgan 
was  delayed  in  taking  the  fleld  by 
a  Tory  insurrection  in  Hampshire 
County,  to  the  north-west ;  and  the 
planting  season  —  the  common  ex 
cuse,  in  the  spring,  throughout  all 
the  Colonies — kept  the  militia  from 

coming  forward  in  any  considerable  numbers.  Arms  also,  as  Lafayette 
represents,  were  wanting,  while  the  lack  of  good  swords  and  proper  equip 
ments  was  the  main  reason  why  the  little  army  contained  so  few  cavalry, 
who  were  needed  even  more  than  riflemen.  The  enemy  mounted  their 
troopers  on  the  best  horses  Virginia  could  afford  ;  but  Lafayette  could 
bring  to  his  aid  neither  troopers  nor  horses.  Among  small  re-enforce 
ments  to  this  branch  of  the  service  that  he  received  soon  after  the  cam 
paign  opened  was  a  volunteer  company  of  fifty  or  sixty  spirited  young 
men,  who  mounted  and  armed  themselves  at  their  own  expense,  under 
Lieutenant-colonel  John  Mercer,  of  Fredericksburg — an  excellent  officer, 
who  had  resigned  his  commission  when  General  Charles  Lee,  whose  aide 
he  had  been  at  Monmouth,  was  dismissed  for  his  conduct  in  that  engage 
ment.  Three  or  four  weeks  later  another  company — the  Baltimore  Troop 
of  Light  Dragoons,  under  Captain  Nicholas  R.  Moore,  composed  also  of 
"men  of  fortune" — arrived  from  Maryland,  and  won  Lafayette's  respect 
for  making  "great  sacrifices  to  serve  their  country."3 

1  Graham's  "Life  of  General  Morgan,"  p.  870. 

2  "The  richest  young  men  of  Virginia  and  Maryland  had  come  to  join  him  as  vol 
unteer  dragoons;  and, from  their  intelligence  as  well  as  from  the  superiority  of  their 
horses,  they  had  been  of  essential  service  to  him." — Lafayette's  Memoirs,  vol.  i.,  p.  263; 
Lee's  Memoirs,  vol.  ii.,  p.  197  ;  Lafayette  to  Morgan,  Graham,  p.  389. 


CORNWALLIS   AND  LAFAYETTE  IN  VIRGINIA.  37 

Not  very  promising  was  the  outlook,  and,  in  outlining  his  intentions 
to  the  commander-in-chief,  the  marquis  was  obliged  to  admit  that  nothing 
more  than  a  weak  defensive  could  be  attempted.  The  first  impulse  of 
his  temper  was  to  risk  something;  but,  reflecting  how  certainly  the  State 
would  be  involved  in  ruin  by  the  defeat  of  his  command,  he  became  "ex 
tremely  cautious."  "Were  I  to  fight  a  battle,"  he  wrote  to  Washington, 
May  24th,  "I  should  be  cut  to  pieces,  the  militia  dispersed,  and  the  arms 
lost.  Were  I  to  decline  fighting,  the  country  would  think  itself  given 
up.  I  am  therefore  determined  to  skirmish,  but  not  to  engage  too  far, 
and  particularly  to  take  care  against  their  immense  and  excellent  body  of 
horse,  whom  the  militia  fear  as  they  would  so  many  wild  beasts."  This 
plan  he  followed  to  the  end,  and  by  it  saved  himself,  his  army,  and  the 
State.  Learning  on  the  27th  that  the  enemy  had  crossed  the  James  be 
low,  lie  evacuated  Richmond,  already  abandoned  by  nearly  all  its  resi 
dents,  and- headed  toward  Fredericksburg,  to  keep  open  his  communica 
tions  with  Wayne  and  the  North.  Against  the  four  thousand  five  hun 
dred  regulars  under  Cornwallis  he  could  present  a  force  of  but  two 
thousand  militia,  the  corps  of  one  thousand  Light  Infantry,  and  forty 
dragoons — the  remnant  of  Armand's  Legion.  "I  am  not  strong  enough," 
he  wrote,  "even  to  get  beaten." 

So  a  new  situation  had  rapidly  developed :  Virginia  the  theatre  of 
active  operations  —  Lafayette  facing  Cornwallis  —  a  meagre,  incomplete 
American  force  opposed  to  the  British  veterans  of  Camden  and  Guilford 
Court  House,  united  with  the  strong  detachments  brought  down  by  Ar 
nold  and  Phillips.  All  eyes  were  now  fixed  upon  this  field,  watching 
the  development  of  the  enemy's  designs. 

But,  while  the  progress  of  Cornwallis  was  at  first  alarming,  it  is  to  be 
observed  that  his  operations  were  intended  to  be  only  partial  or  prelim 
inary,  lie  had  now  reached  a  point  where  he  could  not  act  as  indepen 
dently  as  before,  and  must  subordinate  his  movements  to  those  of  his 
commander-in-chief.  It  was  out  of  his  power  alone  to  conquer  Virginia, 
lie  therefore  proposed  to  accomplish,  in  the  first  instance,  a  secondary 
object,  and  this  he  distinctly  expressed  to  Clinton,  on  May  26th,  as  fol 
lows :  "I  shall  now  proceed  to  dislodge  Lafayette  from  Richmond,  and 
with  my  light  troops  to  destroy  any  magazines  or  stores  in  the  neighbor 
hood  which  may  have  been  collected  either  for  his  use  or  for  General 
Greene's  army.  From  thence  I  purpose  to  move  to  the  Neck  at  Williams- 
burg,  which  is  represented  as  health}-,  and  where  some  subsistence  may  be 


THE  YORKTOWN  CAMPAIGN. 

procured,  and  keep  myself  unengaged  from  operations  which  might  in 
terfere  with  your  plan  for  the  campaign,  until  I  have  the  satisfaction  of 
hearing  from  you."  This  purpose  is  to  be  borne  in  mind  in  following 
out  his  present  movements. 

Cornwallis  moved  forward  from  Petersburg  on  the  24th.  "  The  boy 
cannot  escape  me,"  he  is  reported  to  have  written,  in  an  intercepted  let 
ter,  in  referring  to  Lafayette ;  and  he  sought  to  make  good  the  assertion.1 
He  crossed  the  James  from  Mead's  to  Westover,  twenty-five  miles  below 
Richmond,  occupying  nearly  three  days  in  the  movement.  The  horses 
swum  over,  a  distance  of  two  miles.  It  was  "an  easy  entrance,"  says 
Tarleton,  "  into  a  fertile  quarter  of  Virginia."  On  the  27th  they  en 
camped  near  White  Oak  Swamp.  Simcoe  and  his  dragoons,  patrolling 
in  front,  imposed  upon  and  took  "several  gentlemen"  who  were  watch 
ing  the  motions  of  the  British.  On  the  28th  they  were  at  Bottoms' 
Bridge,  on  the  Chickahominy.  The  evening  before,  Lafayette  had  en 
camped  on  the  same  stream  at  Winston's  Bridge,  twenty  miles  west  of 
them,  and  eight  miles  north  of  Richmond.  lie  was  not  to  be  caught  in 
the  town.2  On  the  29th  they  had  reached  Newcastle,  on  the  Pamunky, 

1  The  histories  of  this  campaign,  from  Gordon  down,  introduce  this  phrase.     Ban 
croft,  however,  calls  attention  to  the  fact  that  Clinton  used  the  expression  to  Germaine, 
'•  Lafayette,  I  think,  cannot  escape  him,"  and  that  the  former  must  have  been  manu 
factured  from  the  latter;  but  it  seems  that  Captain  Welles,  of  the  Light  Infantry,  states, 
as  early  as  June  16th,  1781,  that  it  was  understood  in  camp  that  Coruwallis  had  called 
Lafayette  "  an  aspiring  boy.'1 — MS.  Letter. 

2  In  his  summary  of  this  campaign  ("  Memoirs,''  vol.  i.,  p.  452)  Lafayette  says : 
'•The  great  disproportion  of  the  American  corps,  the  impossibility  of  commanding  the 
navigable  rivers,  and  the  necessity  of  keeping  the  important  side  of  James  River,  do 
not  allow  any  opposition"  to  Cornwallis,  who  on  the  24th-27th  "crosses  to  Westover; 
.  .  .  our  troops  at  Winston's  Bridge;  a  rapid  march  of  the  two  corps,  the  enemy's  to 
engage  an  action,  the  Americans  to  avoid  it,  and  retain  the  heights  of  the  country  with 
the  communication  of  Philadelphia,  which  is  equally  necessary  to  our  army  and  to  the 
existence  of  that  of  Carolina." 

The  following  letter  from  Lafayette  to  Steuben,  dated  Richmond,  May  26th,  1781, 
is  also  of  interest  in  this  connection :  "...  Lord  Cornwallis  arrived  at  Petersboro'  the 
20th  inst.,  with  the  Twenty-third,  Thirty-third,  and  Seventy-first  British,  a  Hessian  regi 
ment,  Tarleton's  Legion,  Hamilton's  corps,  two  hundred  Tories,  some  Light  Infantry 
and  Guards.  They  moved,  the  24th,  to  Maycox,  sending  their  boats  from  City  Point 
to  that  place,  where  they  crossed  over  about  one  thousand  men,  and  employed  them 
selves  yesterday  in  getting  over  the  remainder  to  Westover,  where  they  remained  quiet 
yesterday  evening.  Our  baggage  and  stores  were  sent  off  yesterday  by  the  route  of 
Brook's  Bridge  ;  and  should  the  enemy's  movements  be  rapid  toward  Richmond,  I  must 
trust  to  you  for  giving  directions  relative  to  the  removing  of  the  stores  and  the  secur- 


CORNWALLIS  AND  LAFAYETTE  IN   VIRGINIA.  39 

and  on  the  30th  Hanover  Court  House,  where  they  found  some  French 
twenty-four-pounders,  which  were  spiked  or  thrown  into  the  river.  At 
Page's,  the  present  Hanovertown,  and  Aylett's  warehouses  a  large  quan 
tity  of  tobacco  was  destroyed.  Cornwallis  then  pushed  on  to  the  North 
Anna,  encamping  in  the  vicinity  of  Hanover  Junction  on  the  1st  of  June, 
and  threw  forward  Tarleton  and  Simcoe  to  ascertain  Lafayette's  position. 

But  Lafayette  had  retreated  rapidly,  and  could  not  be  overtaken  by 
the  British.  From  Winston's  Bridge  he  turned,  on  the  28th,  to  the  left, 
and  marched  to  Dandridge's,  where  Goldmine  Creek  runs  into  the  South 
Anna.  This  put  him  some  twenty-five  miles  west  of  the  enemy,  and  at 
a  point  where  he  could  look  to  Fredericksburg,  or  to  AVayne,  at  the  upper 
Potomac,  or  to  Steuben,  who  had  taken  position  Avith  his  Virginia  re 
cruits  at  Point  of  Forks,  west  of  Richmond,  where  the  Fluvanna  unites 
with  the  James.  While  at  Goldmine  Creek  he  wrote  as  follows  to  Steu 
ben,  May  29th :  "  Lord  Cornwallis  has  sent  people  to  examine  the  fords 
of  the  James  River — he  did  since  intend  to  turn  our  left  flank — these 
schemes  he  seems  to  have  abandoned,  and  is  on  his  way  to  Fredericks- 
burg.  I  am  apprehensive  an  expedition  will  go  by  water  up  Powtomack, 
as  General  Leslie  is  said  to  have  gone  down  to  Portsmouth.  We  march 
on  a  parallel  line  with  the  enemy,  keeping  the  upper  part  of  the  country, 
and  disposed  to  turn  back  in  case  this  movement  is  only  a  feint.  I  wish 
all  our  stores  may  be  collected  at  the  Court  House  [Albemarle].  The 
enemy's  cavalry  increase  every  day.  The  gentlemen  do  not  please  to 
take  their  horses  out  of  the  way,  and  the  impressing  warrants  are  so  con 
tracted  that  we  cannot  get  one,  while  the  enemy  sweep  everything  that 
is  in  their  way  and  many  miles  around.  I  request  you  will  urge  the 
Assembly  to  have  us  furnished  with  horses;  if  they  do  not,  it  is  impos 
sible  we  can  defend  this  country."1 

Observing,  on  the  30th,  that  Cornwallis  intended  to  prevent  his  junc 
tion  with  Wayne,  Lafayette  pushed  directly  north,  crossing  the  North 
Anna  probably  at  Anderson's  Bridge,  and  on  June  2d  was  at  Mattapony 
Church,  in  Spottsylvania  County,  a  few  miles  north-east  of  Mount  Pleas 
ant.  Weedon,  at  Fredericksburg,  had  reported  that  all  valuable  stores 
had  been  removed  from  that  place  and  Falmouth,  and  the  marquis  had 

ing  the  remainder  of  the  boats  at  Tuckahoe.  I  have  detained  De  Contun  with  twelve 
of  Armand's  corps,  which  I  could  not  possibly  do  without;  the  remainder  of  them  you 
will  order  as  you  please.  There  are  fifty  men  of  White's  dragoons  at  Staunton,  which 
I  wish  most  earnestly  to  have  mounted  and  equipped.  Our  want  of  cavalry  is  most 
sensibly  felt.  Most  of  the  militia  horse  are  gone,  and  the  times  of  the  remainder  will 
be  out  next  week." — Gates  MS.  l  Gates  MS.  papers. 


40  THE    YORKTOWN   CAMPAIGN. 

then  no  other  object  than  to  reach  Wayne.  On  the  3d  his  head-quarters 
were  at  Corbin's  Bridge,  on  the  Po,  where  he  wrote  to  Morgan  to  move  the 
Burgoyne  prisoners  from  the  Shenandoah  Valley  into  Maryland  as  soon 
as  possible,  as  Cornwallis  might  attempt  their  rescue ;  and  then,  on  the 
•ith,  continuing  his  march  through  Spottsylvania  and  the  edge  of  the 
memorable  "  Wilderness,"  he  crossed  the  Rapidan  at  the  well-known  Ely's 
Ford,  twenty  miles  above  Fredericksburg.  Here  Lafayette's  troops  felt 
secure  from  pursuit,  especially  as  heavy  rains  soon  rendered  the  ford  im 
passable.  Here,  also,  AVayne  was  heard  from,  marching  down  from  Fred 
erick  to  the  Potomac.1 

Meanwhile  Cornwallis  halted  at  the  North  Anna.  The  "celerity"  of 
Lafayette's  march  on  the  retreat  put  an  engagement  out  of  the  question. 
Once  Tarleton  came  up  with  him  at  the  Mattapony,  and  made  the  Light 
Infantry  "stand  to  arms,"  but  he  was  twenty  miles  in  advance  of  the  main 
army,  and  no  fighting  took  place.  His  principal  trophy  was  a  "rebel" 
mail  he  captured,  including  a  letter  from  Lafayette  to  Jefferson,  which 
could  have  afforded  the  enemy  but  little  consolation.  It  was  a  pro 
phetic  declaration  that  the  British  success  in  Virginia,  which  resembled 
the  French  invasion  and  possession  of  Hanover,  in  the  Seven  Years'  AVar, 
was  likely  to  end  in  similar  failure,  "if  the  government  and  country 
would  exert  themselves  at  the  present  juncture."  It  only  remained  now 
for  Cornwallis  to  turn  his  attention  to  the  destruction  of  stores,  and  from 
the  North  Anna,  accordingly,  we  find  him  diverting  his  course.  His  own 
report  to  Clinton  best  expresses  the  object  of  his  subsequent  movements. 

1  The  route  from  Richmond  is  described  as  follows  by  a  militia  officer :  "  I  joined 
the  marquis's  army  the  night  they  left  Richmond,  and  encamped  with  the  army  at 
Winston's  Plantation,  I  believe  in  the  County  of  Hanover.  Tiie  next  day  to  Scotch 
Town,  thence  to  Dandridge's,  in  the  said  county,  where  the  army  halted  a  day  or  two. 
The  route  from  thence  was  in  the  direction  of  Fredericksburg.  After  marching  about 
two  days,  halted  at  Corbin's  Bridges,  in  the  County  of  Spottsylvania,  where  the  army 
lay  two  nights  and  one  day.  The  route  from  thence  was  to  Culpepper  County,  near 
the  Rackoon  Ford,  where  we  halted  until  Wayne's  brigade  joined."  —  BURR'S  Vir 
ginia,  vol.  iv.,  p.  507,  note. 

That  Lafayette  crossed  the  Rapidan  at  Ely's  Ford  appears  from  a  letter  dated  from 
that  point  June  4th.  From  "  Matoponi  Church,"  June  3d,  he  wrote  this  note  to  Steu- 
bcn :  "  I  have  to  inform  you  that  an  express,  witli  despatches  from  his  Excellency  Gov 
ernor  Jefferson  to  me,  has  fallen  into  Tarleton's  hands.  I  am  fearful  there  was  some 
despatches  from  you  accompanied  them,  containing  some  plans  and  information  of  our 
stores.  I  wish  you  to  inform  me  as  soon  as  you  can.  I  wish  the  expresses  to  be  di 
rected  to  come  by  the  route  of  Orange  Court  House— they  should  always  pursue  a  safe 
route,  even  if  they  are  detained  some  time  longer."—  Gates  MS. 


OF   THC 

UNIVERSITY 

OF 


LIEUTENANT-COLONEL  TARLETON,  BRITISH  LEGION.     [FROM  THE  PAINTING  BY  SIR  JOSHUA  RKYNOLDd 
IN  THE  GOVERNOR'S  MANSION,  RICHMOND,  VA.] 


CORNWALLIS   AND   LAFAYETTE   IN  VIRGINIA.  43 

"After  passing  James  lliver  at  Westover,"  he  writes,  "I  moved  to  Han 
over  Court  House,  and  crossed  South  Anna.  The  Marquis  do  la  Fayette 
marched  to  his  left,  keeping  above  at  the  distance  of  about  twenty  miles. 
By  pushing  my  light  troops  over  the  North  Anna,  I  alarmed  the  enemy 
for  Fredericksburgh,  and  for  the  junction  with- General  Wayne,  who  was 
then  marching  through  Maryland.  From  what  I  could  learn  of  the  pres 
ent  state  of  Hunter's  iron  manufactory  [at  Falmouth,  opposite  Fredericks- 
burg],  it  did  not  appear  of  so  much  importance  as  the  stores  on  the  other 
side  of  the  country,  and  it  was  impossible  to  prevent  the  junction  between 
the  marquis  and  Wayne:  I  therefore  took  advantage  of  the  marquis's 
passing  the  Ehappahannock  and 'detached  Lieutenant-colonels  Simcoe  and 
Tarleton  to  disturb  the  Assembly,  then  sitting  at  Charlotteville,  and  to 
destroy  the  stores  there,  at  Old  Albemarle  Court  House,  and  the  Point  of 
Fork ;  moving  with  the  infantry  to  the  mouth  of  Byrd  Creek,  near  the 
Point  of  Fork,  to  receive  these  detachments." 

These  expeditions  were  the  alarming  incidents  of  Cornwallis's  inva 
sion.  They  startled  the  inhabitants  east  of  the  mountains  into  a  realiza 
tion  of  their  insecurity.  Their  depressing  effect  was  of  more  consequence 
than  the  material  damage  inflicted ;  but  even  this,  as  the  result  of  Lafay 
ette's  energy  and  happy  manoeuvres,  was  not  to  be  of  long  duration.  The 
raid  to  Charlottesville  was  conducted  by  Tarleton  ;  that  to  the  Point  of 
Fork,  -west  of  Richmond,  where  the  James  is  formed  by  two  branches,  by 
Simcoe. 

At  Charlottesville  the  Virginia  Legislature  had  convened  to  concert 
measures  for  the  better  defence  of  the  State.  Its  dispersion  was  an  ob 
ject,  and  in  addition  powder  and  a  few  arms  had  been  stored  there.  Tarle 
ton  met  with  some  success  in  his  enterprise.  Taking  one  hundred  and 
eighty  dragoons  and  seventy  mounted  infantry,  he  proceeded  west  to 
Louisa  Court  House,  made  a  forced  march  to  Charlottesville,  and  nearly 
surprised  the  entire  Assembly,  on  Monday,  June  4th,  seizing  some  of  its 
members,  and  all  but  capturing  Jefferson,  the  governor.  He  also  de 
stroyed  the  stores.  Simcoe,  with  one  hundred  cavalry  and  three  hundred 
infantry,  succeeded,  on  his  part,  in  compelling  Steuben  to  retreat  rapidly 
from  the  Point  of  Fork,  on  the  5th,  and  destroyed  arms  and  supplies. 
Both  raiders  then  joined  Cornwallis  at  Elk  Hill,  a  few  miles  below 
Point  of  Fork,  which  he  reached,  with  the  main  army,  on  the  7th.1 

1  Simcoe  and  Tarleton  make  much  of  these  raids,  but  their  descriptions  are  colored. 
With  the  former's  account  in  his  "  Journal  "  read  K.ipp's  "  Life  of  Steuben."  Tarleton 
states  that  lie  took  a  General  Scott  prisoner  at  Charlottesville,  which  proves  to  be  an 


44:  THE   YORKTOWN   CAMPAIGN. 

Lafayette,  wlio  from  Ely's  Ford  had  moved  along  the  northern  bank 
of  the  Eapidan  to  llaccoon  Ford  above,  was  distressed  to  hear  of  these 
incursions,  but  had  wisely  decided  to  wait  for  the  Pennsylvania  line  be 
fore  placing  himself  in  front  of  the  enem}7.  lie  tells  us  in  his  "Me 
moirs  "  that  he  had  made  "  all  his  calculations  so  as  to  be  able  to  effect 
a  junction  with  that  corps,  without  being  prevented  from  covering  the 
military  magazines  of  the  Southern  States,  which  were  at  the  foot  of 
the  mountains  on  the  heights  of  the  Fluvanna."  But  the  Pennsylvan- 
ians  were  delayed,  and  he  wTas  "thus  obliged  to  make  a  choice." 

The  delay  in  the  arrival  of  Wayne  and  his  corps  was  to  be  referred 
mainly  to  those  common  and  vexing  causes  which  had  embarrassed 
American  operations  from  the  beginning  of  the  war  —  lack  of  supplies, 
quartermaster's  stores  especially,  and  unsatisfied  pay-rolls.1  This  officer 
had  been  ordered  southward  in  February,  but  could  not  leave  until  May. 

error — the  Continental  General  Scott  not  then  being  in  the  State,  and  no  other  by  that 
name  serving  in  Virginia.  Colonel  John  Smith  wrote  from  Winchester,  June  18th  (MS. 
letter),  that  "  no  money  was  taken  by  Tarleton,  nor  did  our  Types  fall  into  his  hands." 
Perhaps  the  best  American  account  of  Tarleton's  doings  is  that  in  Bark's  "  History  of 
Virginia,"  vol.  iv.  Tarleton  certainly  rode  very  rapidly,  and  would  probably  have 
caught  more  than  three  or  four  members  of  the  Legislature,  but  for  Captain  John 
Jouett,  a  resident  on  the  route,  who,  like  Paul  Revere,  at  Boston,  suspecting  the  object 
of  the  enemy,  mounted  a  swift  horse  and  readied  Charlottesville  first,  giving  the  alarm 
in  time.  (See  records  of  Virginia  Assembly,  June  12th,  1781,  for  a  resolution  to  present 
Jouett  an  "elegant  sword  and  pair  of  pistols,"  for  apprising  that  body  of  its  clanger.) 

As  to  Governor  Jefferson,  Burk  says  that  he  was  entertaining  the  Speaker  and  other 
members  of  the  Assembly  when  news  came  of  Tarleton's  approach.  The  Speaker  im 
mediately  convened  and  then  adjourned  the  Legislature  to  Staunton.  Captain  McLeod, 
of  Tarleton's  Legion,  took  the  direct  route  to  Jefferson's  house  by  the  Secretary's  Ford. 
The  party,  says  Burk,  "were  already  ascending  the  winding  road  that  leads  from  that 
point  to  the  summit  of  the  hill  called  Monticello,  on  which  stands  Mr.  Jefferson's  house, 
when  Lieutenant  Hudson,  who  had  fortunately  descried  this  rapid  advance,  gave  the 
family  a  further  and  last  alarm.  A  carnage  had  already  been  provided,  and  in  this 
Mrs.  Jefferson  and  her  children  were  safely  conveyed  to  Colonel  Carter's  house,  on  the 
neighboring  mountain.  Mr.  Jefferson  himself,  directing  his  riding-horse,  which  a  black 
smith  was  then  shoeing  at  a  distant  shop,  to  be,  with  all  possible  speed,  led  to  a  gate 
opening  on  the  road  to  Colonel  Carter's  plantation,  walked  to  that  gate  by  a  foot-path, 
which  considerably  shortened  the  route,  and,  finding  his  injunction  obeyed,  was  enabled 
soon  to  rejoin  his  family.  In  less  than  ten  minutes  after  his  leaving  the  house  it  was 
entered  by  McCleod." — History  of  Virginia,  vol.  iv.,  p.  502. 

1  Colonel  Grayson,  of  Virginia,  wrote  from  Philadelphia,  April  17th,  1781 :  "The 
Marquis  la  Fayette  is  on  his  march  to  the  southward — Wayne,  with  a  thousand  men, 
can't  move  a  peg  at  present  for  the  want  of  cash ;  if  we  get  him  off  in  ten  days  from 
this,  it  is  as  much  as  I  expect."— Am.  Hist.  Record,  vol.  ii.,  p.  87. 


CORNWALLIS  AND  •  LAFAYETTE  IN  VIRGINIA.  45 

His  force,  composed  of  the  greater  part  of  the  Pennsylvania  line,  as  re 
organized  since  its  mutiny  in  January,  consisted  of  three  regiments — in 
all,  a  thousand  men — commanded  by  the  brave  and  experienced  colonels, 
Richard  Butler,  Walter  Stewart,  and  Richard  llumpton.  Nine  officers 
and  ninety  men,  with  six  field-pieces,  from  Proctor's  Fourth  Continental 
Artillery,  completed  the  detachment.  Nor,  when  all  was  in  readiness, 
were  the  men  to  leave  in  the  best  of  humor.  They  had  recently  been 
paid  off  in  the  current  notes  \vithout  their  depreciated  value  added,  and 
dissatisfaction  at  once  ran  high.  Certain  leaders  went  so  far  as  to  mani 
fest  the  old  dangerous  spirit  of  insubordination,  which  called  for  and 
received  prompt  and  effective  treatment.  A  drum -head  court-martial 
was  held  in  camp,  and  seven  of  their  number  tried  and  executed.1  This 
disturbance  quelled,  the  troops  left  York,  Pennsylvania,  on  the  morning 
of  May  26th,  and  on  the  30th  were  at  Frederick,  Maryland.  There,  in 
reply  to  urgent  letters  to  push  on  to  Virginia,  Wayne  wrote  as  follows 
to  Lafayette:  "I  well  know  the  necessity  of  an  immediate  junction,  and 
beg  leave  to  assure  you  that  our  anxiety  for  that  event  is  equal  to  your 
wishes ;  may  it  be  speedy  and  propitious.  I  wish  our  numbers  were 
something  more;  however,  we  must  endeavor  to  stem  this  torrent;  and 
if  we  have  it  not  in  our  power  to  command  success,  I  trust,  my  dear 
Marquis,  that  we  shall  produce  a  conviction  to  the  world  that  we  de 
serve  it." 

Crossing  the  Potomac  the  following  day,  the  31st,  at  Poland's  Ferry, 
the  command  passed  through  Leesburg  on  June  4th,  and  that  night  en 
camped  at  Cook's  Mills,  on  Goose  Creek.  There,  on  the  5th,  the  sick 
and  the  heavy  baggage  were  left,  and  the  march  resumed  eighteen  miles 
to  the  Red  House,  in  the  vicinity  of  Thoroughfare  Gap.  Rains  and 
heavy  roads  prevented  rapid  progress.  On  the  7th  the  men  halted  to 
"refresh  and  furbish  up,"  and  not  till  the  9th  did  they  reach  Raccoon 
Ford,  at  the  Rapidan,  by  way  of  Norman's  Ford,  on  the  Rappahannock. 
At  last,  on  the  10th,  they  fell  into  the  same  road  with  and  joined  La 
fayette's  force  about  a  dozen  miles  south  of  the  crossing.2  Wayne,  rid 
ing  in  advance  of  his  troops,  appears  to  have  reached  the  marquis's  head 
quarters  on  the  7th. 

This  important  junction  effected  —  a  re-enforcement  of  a  thousand 
good  soldiers  under  a  gallant  leader — Lafayette  lost  no  .time  in  march- 


1  Wayne's  papers,  published  in  Philadelphia  Casket,  1829;  "  Journal "  of  Lieutenant 
Denny,  Penn.  Hist.  Soc.  Publications. 

9  Feltman's  "Journal,"  Penn.  Hist.  Soc.  Publications. 


46  THE  YORKTOWN  CAMPAIGN.  . 

ing  toward  his  powerful  antagonist.  His  increase  of  force  had  not  ren 
dered  him  the  less  cautious;  but  there  were  magazines  still  within  the 
enemy's  reach,  and  to  protect  these  he  proposed  to  strain  every  nerve. 
Indeed,  as  Lafayette  feared,  Cornwallis  had  already  organized  an  expe 
dition  to  destroy  them,  which  Tarleton,as  usual,  was  to  lead.  With  the 
Seventy-sixth  Highlanders  attached  to  his  Legion  as  mounted  infantry, 
this  eager  raider  was  directed  to  march  to  Albemarle  Old  Court  House, 
upon  the  north  bank  of  the  James  or  Fluvanna  River,  some  distance 
above  the  Point  of  Fork,  destroy  the  stores  collected  there ;  move  upon 
Steuben  below,  employ  "every  means"  to  break  up  his  force;  and,  pro 
ceeding  as  far  as  the  Dan,  intercept  any  detachments  marching  up  from 
the  southward.  "  I  likewise  recommend  it  to  you,"  ran  the  orders  of 
Cornwallis,  "to  destroy  all  the  enemy's  stores  and  tobacco  between 
James  River  and  the  Dan ;  and  if  there  should  be  a  quantity  of  pro 
visions  or  corn  collected  at  a  private  house,  I  would  have  you  destroy 
it,  even  although  there  should  be  no  proof  of  its  being  intended  for  the 
public  service,  leaving  enough  for  the  support  of  the  family ;  as  there 
is  the  greatest  reason  to  apprehend  that  such  provisions  will  be  ulti 
mately  appropriated  by  the  enemy  to  the  use  of  General  Greene's  army, 
which,  from  the  present  state  of  the  Carolinas,  must  depend  on  this 
province  for  its  supplies."1  The  success  of  this  expedition,  which  was 
to  move  on  the  morning  of  the  10th,  would  have  caused  the  Americans 
serious  embarrassment ;  but,  unexpectedly,  on  the  eve  of  its  start  Corn 
wallis  countermanded  his  order,  and  Tarleton  remained  in  camp.  In 
explanation  of  this,  the  latter  officer  states  in  his  "Campaigns"  that  in 
telligence  had  been  received  that  the  stores  at  Albemarle  Court  House 
had  been  removed,  and  that  Steuben  was  too  distant  to  reach.  There 
can  be  little  doubt,  however,  that  the  true  reason  which  influenced  Corn 
wallis  to  hold  Tarleton  back  was,  the  more  important  information  that 
Lafayette,  re-enforced  by  Wayne,  was  marching  down  from  the  Rapidan, 
and  in  forty -eight  hours  might  be  in  close  proximity  to  the  British.  An 
opportunity  would  thus  be  offered  to  strike  at  the  marquis,  in  which 
case  Tarleton's  presence  would  be  necessary.  This  explanation  is  sup 
ported  by  the  facts  that  Cornwallis,  who  had  proposed  to  countermarch 
to  Richmond  on  the  10th,  did  not  move  until  the  15th,  and  that  in  the 
mean  time  Tarleton  was  kept  busy  watching  and  reporting  the  move 
ments  of  the  Americans. 

From   the  Rapidan,  Lafayette  had,  in   fact,  marched  with  all  speed 

1  Tarleton's  "  Campaigns,"  p.  354. 


CORNWALLIS  AND  LAFAYETTE  IN  VIRGINIA.  47 

toward  the  enemy.  There  was  no  delay  after  Wayne  joined  him.  The 
troops  all  moved  straight  on,  the  same  day,  the  10th,  as  far  as  the  North 
Anna.  Crossing  that  stream  at  Brock's  Bridge,  twelve  miles  east  of  the 
present  Gordonsville,  they  traversed  Louisa  County  southward,  and  en 
camped  on  the  llth  near  Boswell's  Tavern,  at  the  South  Anna.1  From 
this  point  it  was  necessary  to  advance  cautiously,  for  it  will  be  observed 
that,  to  reach  the  main  road  from  the  enemy  to  Charlottes ville  and  Staun- 
ton,  whither  the  Albemarle  stores  had  been  removed,  but  where  they 
were  still  exposed  to  a  raid,  he  must  present  his  flank  to  an  attack  by  the 
British  van.  That  road,  known  as  the  Three  Notches  Iload,  he  must 
reach  at  some  point,  to  protect  the  stores  to  the  west ;  but  to  proceed 
directly  from  Boswell's  in  the  usual  way  would  have  been  somewhat  haz 
ardous.  Fortunately,  an  old  road,  little  known  and  long  unused,  ran 
through  the  woods  in  the  same  direction,  and  of  this  Lafayette  promptly 
availed  himself.  Repairing  it  during  the  night  of  the  llth,  the  troops 
on  the  following  morning  took  up  their  march  along  this  route.  Hardly 
more  than  a  foot-path  they  found  it,  rough  and  narrow,  overgrown  with 
thickets,  through  which  the  artillery  was  dragged  with  difficulty ;  but 
they  were  completely  concealed  from  the  enemy's  patrols,  and  when  at 
evening  they  encamped  in  "an  impregnable  position"  behind  Mechunck 
Creek,  thirteen  miles  east  of  Charlottesville,  near  "one  Allegree's,"  they 
were  gratified  to  know  that  they  had  placed  themselves  directly  between 
Cornwallis  and  the  magazines  which  he  had  hoped  to  destroy.2 

At  this  point  Lafayette  felt  a  sensible  relief,  and  cm   the   morning 

1  At  the  present  MunforcVs  Bridge. 

2  This  march  appears  to  have  put  the  enemy  a  day  behind  in  their  information  and 
movements.     Simcoe  moved  at  midnight  of  the  13th  upon  Bird's  Ordinary,  on  the 
Three  Notches  Road,  only  to  find  that  the  marquis  was  twenty-four  hours  in  advance 
of  and  fifteen  miles  beyond  him. 

The  militia  officer  quoted  ante  says  further,  in  regard  to  the  march :  "  The  route 
from  thence  [Raccoon  Ford]  was  in  by-roads  in  direction  of  the  Rivanna  River, 
through  Orange,  the  upper  end  of  Louisa  and  Fluvanna  Counties.  Near  Boswell's 
Tavern  the  army  halted  one  night,  and  the  next  day  was  marched  along  a  new  road 
to  Mechunck  Creek,  which  road  goes  by  the  name  of  the  Marquis's  Road  to  this  day. 
The  army  halted  a  day  or  two  at  this  place,  and  the  route  from  thence  was  generally 
in  the  course  most  direct  to  Williamsburg." — BURK'S  Virginia,  vol.  iv.,  p.  507,  note. 

The  command  halted  on  the  night  of  the  10th,  after  a  hard  march,  at  Brock's 
Bridge,  where  one  of  Lafayette's  letters  is  dated.  For  the  next  two  days  the  diary  of 
Captain  McLellan,  of  the  Pennsylvania  line,  runs:  "June  llth. — Marched  at  5,  and 
halted  at  South  Anna  Creek  [Boswell's,  present  Munford  Bridge],  being  ten  miles. 
June  12th. — Marched  at  7,  and  halted  at  Machunk." — Penn.  Archives,  N.  S.,  vol.  xi. 


4:8  THE   YORKTOWN   CAMPAIGN. 

after  his  arrival  wrote  to  Steuben  as  follows:  "Meclmnk  Creek,  Allegro's, 
13th  June.  .  .  .  Onr  junction  with  the  Pennsylvanians  is  formed,  and  we 
have  again  got  between  the  enenw  and  our  stores.  Nothing  has  been 
lost  but  what  was  left  on  the  Point,  and  the  few  articles  that,  notwith 
standing  your  and  my  directions,  it  had  been  thought  proper  to  send  to 
Charlottesville.  I  have  ordered  the  stores  to  be  removed  higher  np,  and 
am  now  in  a  better  situation  to  defend  them.  I  request,  my  dear  sir,  you 
will  immediately  return  this  way,  and,  with  the  Continentals  and  militia 
under  your  command,  hasten  to  form  a  junction  with  us.  ...  Should 
the  enemy  cross  James  River,  what  I  do  not  believe,  and  none  of  them 
has  yet  attempted,  it  must  be  with  a  view  to  reconquer  Carolina.  In  this 
case  you  would  be  in  the  way,  and  I  would  request  every  obstruction  to 
be  given  them,  as  I  shall  myself  follow  them  as  expeditiously  as  possible. 
But,  on  the  contrary,  should  they  make  the  conquest  of  this  State  their 
main  object,  our  united  force  is  not  too  much  to  resist  them.  In  case 
you  had  received  some  different  directions  from  the  General  [Greene], 
my  dispositions  will,  of  course,  be  suspended  and  go  for  nothing."1 

It  had  now  been  three  weeks  since  the  opening  of  the  campaign  in 
Virginia.  The  immediate  and  obvious  results  were  almost  wholly  in 
favor  of  the  enemy.  They  had  gone  where  they  pleased,  and  destroyed 
much  public  and  private  property.  There  had  been  no  fighting,  for 
there  was  no  force  which  dared  to  meet  them.  Lafayette  had  played 
his  part  well  in  keeping  out  of  harm's  way,  but  not  until  later  was  lie 
to  command  confidence  and  be  fully  appreciated.  Attention  was  turned 
upon  Cornwallis  as  the  present  scourge.  Leading  men  in  the  State  had 
become  thoroughly  alarmed,  and  discussed  the  situation  with  fear  and 
suspense.  Virginia,  indeed,  was  quite  unprepared  for  an  invasion  so  sud 
den  as  this.  Long  security,  occasionally  disturbed  on  her  western  fron 
tier  or  at  the  seaboard,  had  thrown  her  off  her  guard  in  the  matter  of  an 
effective  home  defence.  The  centres  of  operation  being  north  and  south 
of  her,  less  dread  of  danger  had  been  felt  within  her  borders,  especially 
in  the  interior,  and  she  was  now  called  upon  to  suffer,  in  part,  the  con 
sequences  of  unreadiness.  All  this  was  Avell  understood  by  her  public 
men.  Among  others,  and  perhaps  more  than  any  other,  Richard  Henry 
Lee  was  aroused  to  the  critical  state  of  affairs,  and  he  sought  the  means 
of  salvation.  He  saw  no  help  except  through  the  interposition  of  Con 
gress,  and  the  presence  of  Washington  himself  in  Virginia.  His  letters 

1  Gates  MS. 


CORNWALLIS  AND   LAFAYETTE   IN  VIRGINIA.  40 

to  delegates  from  his  own  and  other  States  were  urgent  in  the  matter. 

c>  c-3 

To  Lovell,  member  from  Massachusetts,  he  wrote:  "I  love  liberty,  and 
wish  that  the  whole  human  race  enjoyed  it;  and  I  have  a  peculiar  affec 
tion  for  that  of  the  eastern  part  of  the  Union.  Let  me  entreat  you, 
therefore,  sir,  and  your  worthy  associates  from  the  East,  not  to  slumber 
a  moment  over  our  present  actual  state.  Decision,  despatch,  and  much 
wisdom  are  indispensably  necessary,  or  I  verily  believe  we  shall  be  lost 
to  ourselves  and  you.  I  do  not  write  under  any  influences  of  vain  ap 
prehensions,  but  from  the  cool,  considerate  dictates  of  judgment  founded 
upon  good  materials.  A  very  great  majority  of  the  people  of  this  coun 
try  are  AVhigs,  and  very  determined  to  maintain  their  independence ; 
and,  being  so,  how  they  came  into  their  present  state  of  thraldom  is  be 
side  my  present  purpose  to  inquire.  Like  good  physicians,  the  Congress 
will  consider  that  the  inordinancy  of  the  symptoms  must  be  subdued, 
before  application  can  with  safety  be  made  to  the  cause."  Then,  as  to 
the  remedy,  Lee  continued:  "Let  General  Washington  be  immediately 
sent  to  Virginia  with  two  or  three  thousand  good  troops.  Let  Congress, 
as  the  head  of  the  Federal  Union  in  this  crisis,  direct  that,  until  the  Legis 
lature  can  convene  and  a  governor  be  appointed,  the  general  be  possessed 
of  dictatorial  powers,  and  that  it  be  strongly  recommended  to  the  As 
sembly,  when  convened,  to  continue  those  powers  for  six,  eight,  or  ten 
months,  as  the  case  may  be.  ...  You  may  be  assured,  sir,  that  if  this  is 
quickly  done,  and  arms  and  ammunition  forwarded,  the  enemy's  posses 
sions  in  the  South  will  be  very  fe\v,  and  the  prospects  they  may  propose 
to  themselves  from  a  truce  thus  rendered  abortive."1  To  Washington 
Lee  wrote  quite  as  urgently,  pressing  him  to  come  to  Virginia.  So,  too, 
did  Jefferson,  who  thought  that  if  the  commander-in-chief  lent  his  "per 
sonal  aid"  to  the  State,  the  difficulty  would  then  be  "how  to  keep  men 
out  of  the  field."  John  Cad \valader,  of  Maryland,  was  of  the  same  opin 
ion.  He  felt  that  the  British  were  playing  a  deep  game,  the  success  of 
which  might  involve  America  in  ruin.  Writing  to  Washington  from 
Annapolis,  June  5th,  lie  says:  "That  the  enemy  intend  to  make  the 
Southern  States  the  scene  of  action,  the  ensuing  campaign,  is  past  a 
doubt;  and  the  consequences  are  easily  foreseen,  unless  considerable  re- 
enforcements  very  soon  arrive  either  from  France  or  the  Northern  army. 
.  .  .  The  possession  of  these  States  must  be  of  the  last  importance  to  the 
enemy;  because  in  these  they  possess  the  tobacco,  rice,  indigo,  and  naval 
stores,  which  to  them,  perhaps,  are  more  valuable  than  all  the  other  States 

1  Sparks'  "Washington,"  vol.  viii. 
4 


50 


THE   YORKTOWN    CAMPAIGN. 


together.  These,  too,  are  separated  by  a  great  natural  line  from  the  other 
States;  and  it  appears  to  me  more  than  probable,  considering  all  circum 
stances,  that  Great  Britain  finds  it  impracticable  to  possess  themselves  of 
all  America,  and  is  now  preparing  to  conquer  these  States,  in  hopes  that 
the  powers  of  Europe,  by  their  interposition,  will  secure  them  to  her." 


THOMAS    JEFFERSON.       [FROM    THE    ORIGINAL    PORTRAIT    BY    GILBERT    STUART.] 

Then,  with  Lee  and  Jefferson,  he  added  his  wish,  as  well  as  "  the  wish 
of  every  person  he  had  conversed  with,"  that  Washington  would  imme 
diately  take  the  command  in  Virginia. 

Deeply  as  the  commander-in-chief  was  moved  by  these  appeals,  lie 
could  only  return  a  negative  answer.  It  will  be  seen  that  he  had  just- 
entered  upon  a  definite  plan  of  operations  in  the  North,  which  he  hoped 


COKNWALLIS   AND    LAFAYETTE   IN   VIRGINIA.  51 

would  relieve  the  pressure  upon  the  South,  and  its  alteration  could  not  be 
entertained.  There  was  the  further  consideration  that  Washington  was 
the  only  American  officer  who  had  the  power  to  command  the  French 
auxiliaries,  who  were  about  to  join  him  for  an  active  campaign.  But  one 
other  general,  next  to  the  chief,  could  by  his  presence  and  movements 
have  allayed  the  alarm  in  Virginia  more  speedily  than  Lafayette;  and 
this  was  Greene.  Much,  however,  as  he  wished  to  come  to  the  State,  he 
felt  that  he  must  stay  in  South  Carolina,  where  the  enemy  had  lately 
been  re-enforced.  "I  feel  for  the  sufferings  of  Virginia,"  he  wrote  to 
Jefferson,  June  27th,  "and,  if  I  had  been  supported  here  in  time,  I  should 
have  been  there  before  this  with  a  great  part  of  our  cavalry.  But,  though 
I  have  not  had  it  in  my  power  to  join  the  army,  I  hope  your  Legislature 
are  convinced  that  I  have  left  nothing  unattempted  in  my  power  to  afford 
you  all  possible  protection."  "The  importance  of  cavalry,"  he  continues, 
"and  the  consequences  that  might  follow  the  want  of  it,  your  Excellency 
will  do  me  the  justice  to  say  I  early  and  earnestly  endeavored  to  impress 
upon  your  Legislature,  and  they  must  blame  themselves  if  they  experience 
any  extraordinary  calamities.  You  would  have  been  in  a  tolerable  situa 
tion  had  your  cavalry  been  sufficiently  augmented,  and  the  last  re-enforce 
ment  from  New  York  had  not  arrived.  This  gave  the  enemy  such  a  de 
cided  superiority  that  there  appears  nothing  left  but  to  avoid  a  misfortune 
until  re-enforcements  can  be  got  from  the  northward.  I  have  the  high 
est  opinion  of  the  marquis's  abilities  and  zeal,  and  flatter  myself  that 
nothing  will  be  left  unattempted  to  give  all  the  protection  to  the  State 
that  his  force  will  admit.  Your  militia  are  numerous  and  formidable, 
and  I  hope,  if  General  Morgan  is  out  with  them,  they  will  be  useful."  ' 

So  neither  Washington  nor  Greene,  at  the  two  extremes  of  the  field, 
could  "-O  to  the  threatened  centre  in  Virginia,  and  Lafnvette  was  left  to 

O  O  */ 

continue  its  defence  as  best  he  could.  Events  proved  that  the  confidence 
reposed  in  him  by  his  superiors  was  not  misplaced.  "What  a  herculean 
task  we  have,"  wrote  Greene  to  him,  "to  contend  with  a  formidable  enemy 
with  a  handful  of  men  !"  But  the  marquis  was  equal  to  it.  His  shoul 
ders  seemed  to  broaden  under  the  accumulating  responsibilities;  and  when 
the  campaign  closed  with  Yorktown,  neither  friends  nor  enemies  were 
slow  to  recognize  how  greatly  his  services  had  contributed  to  the  event. 

But  to  return  to  the  field.     Lafayette  had  at  least  accomplished  two 
things:  he  had  become  stronger  by  retreating,  and  upon  his  reappearance 


1  Greene's  '•  Greene,"  vol.  iii.,  appendix. 


02  THE  YOKKTOWN  CAMPAIGN. 

before  the  enemy  had,  for  the  time  being,  stopped  Tarleton's  threatened 
raid.  Interest,  accordingly,  centred  on  the  enemy's  next  move.  It  re 
mained  to  be  seen  whether  Cornwallis  would  persist  in  his  attempt  upon 
the  stores  in  spite  of  Lafayette — whether  he  would  advance  upon  and 
engage  him  while  Tarleton  struck  out  upon  his  expedition,  as  originally 
proposed,  or  whether  he  would  turn  back  toward  the  coast.  One  thing 
is  certain,  that  Lafayette,  although  further  re-enforced  at  the  Mechunk, 
according  to  previous  appointment,  by  six  hundred  mountain  riflemen 
from  Augusta  and  adjacent  counties,  under  General.  Campbell,  of  King's 
Mountain  fame,  had  still  no  intention  of  risking  a  battle;  and,  had  the 
enemy  moved  upon  him,  he  would  doubtless  have  retreated  along  the 
line  of  his  stores  and  communications  either  toward  Greene  below  or  to 
the  northward. 

All  doubt  upon  these  points  was  solved  on  the  15th,  when  Cornwallis 
broke  camp  at  Elk  Hill  and  faced  eastward  toward  Richmond.  Here, 
finally,  was  a  retrograde  march  by  the  enemy — a  favorable  turn,  appar 
ently,  for  affairs  in  Virginia.  The  Americans,  troops  and  people  alike, 
regarded  it  with  relief  and  satisfaction,  and  naturally  construed  the  move 
ment  into  an  admission,  on  the  part  of  Cornwallis,  that  he  had  been  disap 
pointed  in  failing  to  destroy  all  the  magazines,  and  in  not  finding  a  loyal 
element  ready  to  support  the  King's  authority  when  established.  The 
growing  proportions  of  Lafayette's  force  were  also  supposed  to  have  mod 
erated  his  inclination  to  continue  his  invasion  ;  and  Lafayette  himself 
took  this  view  in  part.  But,  of  coarse,  Cornwallis  had  not  changed  his 
tactics  either  from  fear  or  compulsion.  Although  not  having  destroyed 
as  much  as  he  had  hoped,  he  was  still  master  of  the  situation,  and  could 
move  at  will  in  any  direction.  He  had  carried  out  his  first  intentions, 
and  was  turning  back  to  the  waters  of  the  Chesapeake,  to  await  instruc 
tions  and  arrange  further  plans  with  his  commander-in-chief  at  New 
York. 

As  the  enemy  marched  back  Lafayette  followed,  hanging  upon  their 
rear  —  a  new  sensation  for  his  command.  lie  had  not,  as  sometimes 
stated,  assumed  the  offensive.  His  force  was  still  weak  in  quality  com 
pared  with  the  British  regulars,  and  he  could  do  little  more  than  watch 
and  skirmish.  Marching  rapidly,  Cornwallis  entered  Richmond  on  the 
16th.  Lafayette,  moving  from  the  Mechunk  on  the  14th,  along  the  line 
of  the  South  Anna,  kept  off  a  distance  of  about  twenty  miles.  What 
with  the  heat  and  not  over-abundant  supplies,  it  was  a  wearing  time  for 
his  men.  The  entry  in  Lieutenant  Feltman's  journal  for  the  loth  runs: 
"A  great  scarcity  of  water,  and  a  very  fatiguing  march.  .  .  .  .Refreshed 


CORNWALLIS   AND   LAFAYETTE   IN   VIRGINIA.  53 

ourselves  in  an  orchard  with  Colonel  Robinson."  Captain  Roger  "Welles, 
of  the  Connecticut  Light  Infantry,  acknowledging  a  letter  from  his  fa 
ther,  wrote  on  the  16th :  "  It  found  me  very  destitute  of  summer  clothes 
and  almost  every  other  necessary  requisite  to  render  life  tolerable  in  this 
uninhabited  world.  We  frequently  march  Avhole  days  without  seeing 
anything  like  a  house  except  a  log  hut  or  two.'"  On  the  other  hand,  as 
to  personal  experiences  in  the  enemy's  camp,  Captain  Samuel  Graham, 
of  the  Seventy-sixth  Regulars,  writes,  in  his  "Memoirs:"  "Our  encamp 
ments  were  always  chosen  on  the  banks  of  a  stream, and  were  extremely 
picturesque,  as  we  had  no  tents,  and  were  obliged  to  construct  wigwams 
of  fresh  boughs  to  keep  off  the  rays  of  the  sun  during  the  day.  At  night 
the  blazing  fires  which  we  made  of  the  fence-rails  illuminated  the  sur 
rounding  scenery,  which,  in  this  part  of  America,  is  of  the  most  mag 
nificent  description.  There  was  but  one  wish  in  the  army,  which  was  to 
come  up  with  the  marquis.  At  parting  with  my  friends  in  the  evening, 
it  was  always  '  Proelium  pugnatum  est !'  "  2 

On  the  17th  Lafayette's  camp  wras  once  more  at  Dan d ridge's,  on  the 
South  Anna,  in  Hanover  County,  north-west  of  Richmond,  with  detach 
ments  and  patrols  well  throwrn  out  toward  the  enemy.  One  of  these  par 
ties,  four  hundred  strong,  under  Muhlenberg,  tempted  Tarleton,  who  was 
posted  at  Meadow  Bridge,  on  the  Chickahominy,  and  on  the  18th  he 
made  a  forced  march  to  surprise  it.  Hearing  of  this,  Lafayette  at  once 
despatched  Wayne  with  the  Pennsylvaniaris  and  Light  Infantry  to  inter 
cept  him.  Both  failed.  Tarleton  missed  Muhlenberg,  who  retreated  in 
time  ;  Wayne,  after  a  night  march  of  thirteen  miles,  missed  Tarleton,  who 
had  also  turned  back.  On  the  19th  another  re-enforcement  reached  the 
marquis  in  the  shape  of  General  Steuben,  with  about  four  hundred  and 
fifty  Virginia  eighteen -months  men,  increasing  the  American  force  to 
two  thousand  Continentals  and  three  thousand  t\vo  hundred  militia  and 
riflemen.  Steuben  himself,  afflicted  with  the  gout  and  overcome  by  in 
cessant  exertion  and  fatigue,  soon  retired  to  the  vicinity  of  Charlottes- 
ville  to  recuperate. 

From  Richmond  Cornwallis  resumed  his  march  coastward  on  the  20th. 
Lafayette,  who  changed  his  camp  every  day,  continued  to  follow,  his  ad 
vance  entering  the  town  twenty  hours  after  the  enemy  left.3  It  was  not 

1  MS.  letter. 

3  "Memoirs  of  General  Graham.1'     Privately  printed.     Edinburgh. 

3  From  Lafayette's  position  at  Mechunk's  Creek,  in  the  vicinity  of  the  present  Boyd's 
Tavern,  the  route  lay  along  the  right  bank  of  the  South  Anna.  On  June  loth,  the  day 
after  leaving  Mechunk,  the  marquis  was  probably  near  Boswcll's.  There  he  wrote 


54:  THE   YOKKTOWX   CAMPAIGN. 

quite  a  month  since  he  had  quitted  it  to  keep  out  of  his  Lordship's  way. 
But  by  no  means  were  the  tables  turned  as  yet.  Lafayette  was  far  from 
pursuing  his  late  pursuer.  However  ignorant  he  might  be  of  the  true 
cause  of  the  enemy's  retreat,  he  well  understood  that  at  any  moment  it 
might  be  turned  into  an  advance  and  chase  again,  and  that  it  behooved 
him  to  be  studiously  wary  in  following.  lie  kept  to  his  rule  of  retaining 
"a  posture  of  defence,"  manoeuvring  only,  and  above  all  avoiding  a  gen 
eral  engagement.  At  the  same  time  he  watched  the  enemy's  rear,  and 
sought  opportunities  to  strike  at  it;1  and  in  a  day  or  two  the  opportunity 
came.  Once,  on  the  23d,  Cornwallis  stopped,  and  was  on  the  point  of 
making  a  sudden  countermarch  to  attack  Lafayette,  who  had  ventured 

again  to  Stcuben,  who  had  retreated  toward  North  Carolina  after  Simcoe's  raid,  to  join 
him  as  soon  as  possible  :  "Lord  Cornwallis  is  retiring  tp  Richmond, and  we  are  follow 
ing  him.  ...  I  will  be,  the  day  after  to-morrow,  at  Col.  Dandridge's,  twenty-two 
miles  from  Richmond.  I  understand  it  is  twenty -five  miles  from  Carter's  Ferry. 
Should  you  be  able  to  join  us  by  the  17th  or  18th  it  will  make  me  very  happy."- 
Oates  MS. 

On  the  next  day  Lieutenant-colonel  Barber  wrote  to  his  wife  as  follows:  "On  Po- 
monkie  River,  forty  miles  from  Richmond,  June  16th,  1781  [the  South  Anna  was  then 
also  called  the  Pamunkey].  .  .  .  We  as  yet  have  had  no  action  with  the  enemy.  They 
have  made  a  third  tack,  and  are  now  at  Richmond.  Their  behavior  wears  the  appear 
ance  of  a  retreat.  Since  my  last  we  are  re-enforced  very  considerably — Wayne  has 
come  with  three  battalions.  We  now  begin  to  imagine  ourselves  a  match  for  the  ene 
my,  and  unless  they  receive  re -enforcements  they  must  undoubtedly  retire  to  Ports 
mouth.  From  the  most  accurate  intelligence  the  enemy  are  about  4000  strong,  and 
we  expect  within  three  or  four  days  to  have  that  number  of  militia." — MS.  Letter. 

On  the  18th  Lafayette  was  at  Allen's  Creek,  and  at  night  at  Goldmine  Creek  again, 
where  he  wrote  to  Steuben:  "  Col.  Dandridge's  house,  twenty-three  miles  from  Rich 
mond,  18th  June,  1781.  .  .  .  The  enemy  are  at  Richmond  and  its  vicinity.  We  are 
upon  ground  in  this  neighborhood  where  \vc  shall  remain  for  your  junction,  which  I 
request  may  be  made  to-morrow  as  early  as  possible."  For  the  21st  and  22d  Lieutenant 
Fcltman's  record  is  this:  "June  21st. — -Arrived  at  Col.  Simm's  Mills.  Marched  at  12 
o'clock  A.M.,  eight  miles,  and  lay  at  Burriirs  Ornery,  destitute  of  every  necessary  of  life. 
22d. — This  day  we  passed  through  Richmond  in  twenty  hours  after  the  enemy  had 
evacuated  it — a  number  of  houses  being  destroyed  by  the  enemy.  They  also  destroyed 
a  great  quantity  of  tobacco,  which  they  threw  into  the  streets  and  set  fire  to  it." 

1  The  Wayne  Papers  show  that  Lafayette  wished  to  attack,  if  he  could  do  so  safely, 

as,  for  instance,  the  following  note  : 

"  Head-qnnrters,  21st  June,  1781. 

"  MY  DEAR  SIK, — By  the  time  you  receive  this  you  must  have  accounts  from  the 
enemy.  Should  they  be  near  us,  this  would  be  the  good  time  for  the  night  attack  ;  but 
I  am  afraid  we  shall  not  have  the  opportunity.  Whatever  road  the  enemy  take,  you 
will  please  to  proceed  in  that  route,  and,  if  opportunity  offers,  to  attack  them.  You 
will  do  for  the  best.  Yours,  LAFAYETTE. 

"  GKN'L  WAYNE." 


CORXWALLIS   AM)    LAFAVKTTK    IX    VIK(;1X1A.  55 

nearer  to  him  than  usual.  The  alarm  reached  Wayne's  camp,  and  the 
troops  eagerly  formed  for  action  and  stood  to  their  arms  for  several  hours. 
Corn  wall  is,  however,  kept  on  to  Williamsburg;  the  American  advance  to 
Bottoms'  Bridge,  and  on  the  25th  to  Xew  Kent  Court  House. 

Lafayette's  army  at  this  date  was  composed  of  about  forty-five  hun 
dred  men,  divided  as  follows:  The  New  England  Light  Infantry,  eight 
hundred  effectives,  under  Muhlenberg,  and  Wayne's  Pennsylvanians, 
seven  hundred  and  fifty,  were  the  Continental  veterans  —  equal  to  the 
best  in  the  English  army.  The  three  Virginia  militia  brigades  were  com 
manded  by  Generals  Stevens,  six  hundred  and  fifty  men  ;  Lawson,  seven 
hundred  and  fifty;  and  Campbell,  with  his  seven  hundred  and  eighty 
riflemen.  The  Virginia  Continental  regiment  of  eighteen -months  men, 
commanded  just  now  by  Colonel  Christian  Febiger,  an  excellent  officer, 
but  generally  by  Lieutenant- colonel  Thomas  Gaskins,  numbered  four 
hundred  and  twenty-five.  The  artillery — detachments  from  the  Second 
and  Fourth  Continental  Regiments — was  two  hundred  strong,  with  eight 
or  ten  guns.  The  regular  cavalry  was  represented  by  only  sixty  indif 
ferent  horsemen,  to  whom  are  to  be  added  about  as  many  volunteer  dra 
goons.1  It  was  Lafayette's  policy  to  scatter  this  force  on  different  roads, 
to  convey  the  impression  of  large  numbers.  It  never  encamped  in 
line,  and  was  so  handled  that  concentration  could  be  rapidly  effected. 
Spies  were  thus  likely  to  be  deceived,  and  deserters  could  not  give  full 
information.  Select  detachments  of  Continentals  and  riflemen  general 
ly  formed  the  advance,  led  by  good  officers,  such  as  a  small  legion  of 
the  cavalry  and  a  few  infantry,  commanded  by  Major  William  McPher- 
son,  of  Pennsylvania,  in  whose  abilities  Lafayette  had  much  confidence. 
Majors  Richard  Call  and  John  Willis,  two  experienced  officers  of  the 
Virginia  line — the  former  of  the  Third  Continental  Cavalry — also  com 
manded  parties  of  one  hundred  or  more  good  riflemen  each;  while  Lieu 
tenant-colonel  John  Mercer,  already  referred  to,  was  constantly  recon 
noitring  with  his  volunteer  troop.  Major  Galvan,  a  French  officer,  of 
Vose's  Massachusetts  Light  Infantry,  had  an  "advanced  guard"  from  his 
own  corps.  Organized  in  this  way,  and  always  on  the  move,  marching 
as  often  by  night  as  by  day,  Lafayette  followed  the  British  down  the 
peninsula. 

On  the  26th  occurred  the  first  skirmish  of  the  campaign  ;  not  a 
great  affair — but  it  indicated  a  growing  confidence  on  Lafayette's  part, 


1  These  figures  are  given  by  Colonel  Febiger  in  a  letter  of  July  3d,  1781.— Bland 


5(>  THE   YORKTOWN   CAMPAIGN. 

and  a  natural  wish  not  to  let  the  enemy  reach  their  shipping  with 
out  a  brush.  On  the  day  before,  Simcoe's  Rangers  had  been  collecting 
cattle  and  burning  stores  above  Williatnsburg,  where  Cornwallis  had 
halted.  "Wayne,  with  Lafayette's  approval,  despatched  most  of  the  ad 
vanced  parties,  under  Colonel  Richard  Butler,  one  of  the  heroes  of  Stony 
Point,  to  intercept  him  on  his  return.  Butler,  with  McPherson,  Call, 
and  Willis,  inarched  from  the  American  outposts  all  night  of  the  25th, 
but  would  still  have  failed  to  overtake  Simcoe,  had  not  McPherson,  at 
sunrise,  mounted  fifty  of  the  Light  Infantry  behind  as  many  dragoons 
and  pushed  hard  after  him.  Simcoe,  meanwhile,  had  gone  into  camp 
six  miles  above  Williamsburg,  near  Spencer's  Ordinary,  when  McPher 
son  dashed  in  upon  his  pickets.  A  trumpeter  gave  the  alarm,  and  a 
brief  hand-to-hand  cavalry  skirmish  took  place.  McPherson  was  un 
horsed,  but  escaped,  and  his  dragoons  scattered  and  retreated,  under 
cover  of  the  riflemen,  who  were  coining  up.  The  latter  soon  became 
engaged  with  the  Hangers,  and  a  desultory  fire  was  kept  up.  "Wayne, 
who  had  followed  Butler  with  the  Pennsylvania  line,  apprehending  the 
situation,  pushed  Major  Hamilton  forward  with  several  companies  to 
support  the  cavalry  and  riflemen.  Simcoe  regarded  the  American  at 
tack  as  a  serious  one,  and  sent  word  to  Cornwallis  without  delay,  who 
immediately  moved  the  whole  army  forward  to  his  aid;  but  no  further 
fighting  occurred.  The  loss  on  each  side  was  about  thirty.1 

For  the  week  to  come  there  was  no  material  change  in  the  situation. 
Cornwallis  had  halted.  His  future  movements  could  not  be  divined. 
Lafayette  still  hovered  in  his  vicinity,  shifting  his  camp  almost  daily. 
The  record  for  the  3d  of  July  in  Feltman's  diary  is  brief  but  expressive: 
"Manoeuvres  retrograde  and  many;  the  troops  almost  worn  out;  very 
hot  weather."  On  that  date  the  position  of  the  troops  was  as  follows: 
General  Campbell,  with  the  riflemen,  in  front,  near  Bird's  Ordinary,  six 
teen  miles  from  Williamsburg;  Febiger's  Virginia  detachment  four  miles 
in  his  rear;  Wayne  and  Muhlenberg  one  mile  and  a  half  farther  back; 
arid  in  their  rear  the  militia  and  artillery.2  Febiger  states  that  the  army 
had  not  been  encamped  so  closely  as  this  for  nearly  three  weeks.  On  the 
4th  the  troops  celebrated  "Independence"  in  true  camp  style,  parading 
and  firing  salutes.  Notwithstanding  their  constant  and  fatiguing  duty, 


1  See  return  of  American  loss  in  Appendix.     Simcoe  describes  this  skirmish   mi 
nutely,  leaving  the  impression  that  it  was  a  considerable  engagement,  won  by  his 
generalship. 

2  Colonel  Febiger  to  Colonel  Bland,  July  3d,  1781.— Bland  Papers. 


Of    THE 

UNIVERSITY 

OF 


COKXWALLIS  AND  LAFAYETTE   IN  VIRGINIA.  59 

being  subject  to  alarms  and  calls  to  march  at  all  hours,  day  and  night, 
they  seem  to  have  been  in  good  spirits,  under  the  conviction  that  thev 
had  at  last  put  Cornwallis  upon  his  guard  and  saved  the  State.  An  in 
teresting  letter  from  camp,  written  on  the  4th,  indicates  satisfaction  with 
results  thus  far.  "Lord  Cornwallis,"  says  the  writer,  "is  now  in  Wil- 
liamsburg.  His  single  tour  to  Virginia  has  cost  the  Xing  more  money, 
by  the  loss  of  forts,  men,  cannon,  stores,  magazines,  and  supposed  Carolina 
territory,  than  it  would  have  cost  the  whole  nobility  of  England  to  have 
made  the  tour  of  the  world.  His  Lordship  had  a  most  fatiguing  march 
to  the  Point  of  Fork  and  back  again.  The  marquis  was  to  him  what 
Fabius  was  to  Hannibal.  Before  Wayne  made  his  junction  he  never  lost 
sight  of  his  Lordship;  and  when  the  junction  was  formed,  by  the  single 
manoeuvre  of  opening  a  march  through  the  wood  which  intersected  his 
Lordship,  preserved  the  stores  at  Old  Albermarle  Court  House,  which  the 
enemy  had  principally  in  view.  As  yet  the  war  between  the  marquis 
and  his  Lordship  has  been  a  war  of  posts  and  marches.  The  King  of 
Prussia  and  the  Emperor  carried  on  a  war  much  in  the  same  manner. 
It  is  a  question,  however,  whether  this  will  have  a  like  conclusion,  as 
theirs  was  closed  without  a  battle.  The  vanguard  of  this  army  is  within 
twelve  miles  of  Williamsburg.  His  Lordship  does  not  seem  quite  satis- 
lied  with  its  neighborhood.  There  is  in  it,  also,  men  who  have  given 

c?  o 

him  reason  to  fear  them — General  Campbell,  who  took  a  little  army  from 
him  at  King's  Mountain,  and  General  Morgan,  who  took  another  at  the 

C-1  *  O  7 

Cowpens."1 

Events  now  hastened  Cornwallis  to  his  fate  at  Yorktown.  His  lei 
surely  withdrawal  from  the  heart  of  the  State  indicated  some  settled  pur 
pose  on  his  part  of  which  the  Americans  were  ignorant.  It  is  to  be  re 
peated  that  he  was  not  forced  to  retreat  to  Williamsburg.  Then  why 
had  he  gone  there?  What  would  be  his  next  move?  Lafayette  could 
only  wait  and  see.  Cornwallis  hoped  that  from  Williamsburg,  or  some 
point  on  the  Chesapeake,  he  would  be  able,  by  the  consent  and  co-opera 
tion  of  Clinton  at  New  York,  to  renew  the  Virginia  Campaign  as  soon  as 
the  heated  season  was  over.  He  had  entered  the  State  for  the  one  pur 
pose  of  eventually  subjugating  it;  he  favored  "solid  operations"  there. 
Clinton  agreed  with  him,  but  claimed  that  the  force  was  not  to  be  had 
for  so  extensive  an  undertaking.  Cornwallis,  we  have  seen,  suggested 
the  abandonment  of  New  York,  if  necessary,  while  Clinton  could  not 
assent.  But  the  question  of  future  operations  in  Virginia  soon  ceased  to 


1  Letter  from  u  A  Gentleimn  in  Lafiryette's  Army,"  in  Baltimore  paper,  July,  1781. 


60  THE  YOKKTOWN  CAMPAIGN. 

be  a  primary  matter  with  the  British  Commander-in-chief,  as  we  shall 
presently  find  that  Washington  was  now  threatening  him,  and  lie  felt 
obliged  to  send  to  Cornwallis  for  a  portion  of  the  troops  previously  sent 
to  the  Chesapeake.  The  latter  promptly  obeyed,  and,  to  embark  the 
troops,  determined  to  retire  to  Portsmouth  by  crossing  the  James  River 
at  Jamestown  Island. 

Lafayette's  opportunity  now  seemed  to  be  at  hand.  Might  he  not 
inflict  upon  Cornwallis  a  damaging  stroke  while  he  was  crossing  the 
James?  As  a  successful  dash  could  be  turned  to  good  account  at  that 
juncture  in  still  further  cheering  the  spirits  of  his  own  troops,  and  putting 
a  brighter  face  upon  the  situation  in  Virginia,  the  marquis  proposed  to 
make  the  attempt;  and  what  followed  is  known  in  Revolutionary  annals 
as  the  action  or  affair  of  "Green  Spring."  Lafayette  failed  to  accom 
plish  what  he  hoped  might  be  possible,  but,  on  the  contrary,  suffered  a 
repulse,  which  has  been  variously  criticised;  and,  in  noticing  the  affair,  the 
point  is  material  how  far  he  departed  on  this  occasion  from  his  policy  of 
acting  on  the  safe  defensive,  and  committed  himself  to  the  chance  of  a  dis- 

o  '  « 

astrous  defeat. 

BATTLE    OF    GREEN    SPRING. 

The  collision  occurred  on  the  6th.  Lafayette's  movements  on  that 
and  the  previous  day  seem  to  have  been  conducted  with  his  usual  caution 
and  vigilance.  Learning  through  Mercer  that  the  enemy  had  left  Wil- 
liamsburg,  and  were  at  the  bank  of  the  James,  and  fathoming  their  inten 
tion,  he  broke  up  his  camp  on  the  5th,  and  marched  to  Bird's  Tavern 
with  all  the  troops.1  The  Continentals  and  advance  parties  kept  on  to 
Chickahominy  Church,  or  Non-ell's  Mills,  eight  miles  from  Jamestown, 
where  they  lay  on  their  arms  all  night.2  On  the  following  morning 
"corroborating  advices"  arrived,  to  the  effect  that  the  enemy  were  en 
gaged  in  crossing,  and  that  only  the  rear  guard  remained  on  the  James 
town  side.  Lafayette,  thereupon,  determined  to  despatch  Wayne  with 
five  hundred  men  to  "come  up"  with  it.  Wayne  took  Colonel  Stewart's 
Pennsylvania  battalion,  with  Mercer's,  McPherson's,  Galvan's,  Call's,  and 
Willis's  small  parties,  and  marched  to  the  Green  Spring  Farm,  within 
half  a  mile  of  the  British  outposts.  At  this  point  conflicting  intelligence 
was  received.  Mercer,  on  one  hand,  ascertained  through  a  negro  that 

1  On   the  5th    Lafayette  was   encamped  below  New  Kent  Court  House.     Bird's 
Tavern  was  sixteen  miles  from  Williamsburg,  on  the  road  to  the  Court  House.     Green 
Spring  Farm  lies  a  few  miles  west  of  Williamsburg. 

2  Lafavette's  Letters.     Feltman's  "Journal.'*' 


CORNWALLIS   AND  LAFAYETTE   IN  VIRGINIA.  01 

both  Cornwallis  and  Tarleton  were  still  on  the  north  side  of  the  river, 
while  others  reported  the  frequent  passage  of  boats  to  the  opposite  bank. 
•Under  these  circumstances  Lafayette,  who  had  joined  Wayne  and  the  ad 
vance,  decided,  not  far  from  one  o'clock  in  the  afternoon,  to  send  for  the 
remaining  Pennsylvanians  and  all  the  Light  Infantry,  left  six  miles  back 
at  Non-ell's  Mills,  to  be  nearer  Wayne,  in  case  he  encountered  the  enemy 
in  considerable  force.  Upon  receiving  the  order,  the  troops  at  the  Mills 
inarched  promptly  and  very  rapidly  to  Green  Spring.  The  militia, 
who  are  commonly  represented  as  also  having  marched  to  the  same  spot, 
remained  at  Bird's  Tavern,  at  least  twelve  miles  in  the  rear,  and  took  no 
part  in  the  movements  of  the  day. 

The  Green  Spring  Farm,  whose  mansion  had  been  the  residence  of 
Sir  William  Berkeley,  an  early  Governor  of  Virginia,  fell  off,  along  its 
south-eastern  edge,  into  low,  marsh}7  ground,  some  four  hundred  yards 
wide,  across  which  ran  a  narrow  causeway  and  road  which  intersected  the 
main  road  from  Williamsburg  to  Jamestown.  By  following  the  latter 
road  a  mile  or  more  from  the  marsh  the  camp  of  the  enemy  would  be 
reached,  pitched,  compactly  behind  woods  on  the  bank  of  the  river  oppo 
site  the  north  end  of  Jamestown  Island.  The  enemy  were  still  there. 
Cornwallis  had  shrewdly  conjectured  that  Lafayette  would  take  the  oc 
casion  to  attack  his  rear,  and  when  he  learned  of  his  approach  he  did 
everything  to  confirm  his  antagonist  in  the  belief  that  at  that  time,  the 
afternoon  of  the  6th,  only  his  rear  remained  to  cross.  Simcoe's  Hangers 
and  the  baggage  alone  had  passed  over.  If  Lafayette  approached  near 
enough,  the  main  body  of  the  British  army  was  ready  to  fall  upon  him. 

Pending  the  arrival  of  the  troops  from  Norrell's  Mills,  Wayne  spent 
most  of  the  afternoon  skirmishing  with  the  enemy.  The  patrols  of 
Tarleton's  Legion,  which  covered  their  front,  were  driven  back  over  the 
morass,  and  the  infantry  pickets  attacked  in  the  woods  on  the  other  side. 
This  continued  between  three  and  five  o'clock.  Wayne's  entire  advance 
crossed  the  morass,  gaining  ground  steadily  as  the  riflemen,  under  Majors 
Call  and  Willis,  supported  by  Mercer,  Gal  van,  and  McPherson,  with  a 
few  dragoons  and  light  infantry,  kept  up  an  effective  fire  in  front.  Stew 
art's  Pennsylvania  battalion  acted  as  a  reserve.  The  striking  feature  of 
this  preliminary  skirmishing  was  the  art  practised  by  Cornwallis  in  at 
tempting  to  draw  Wayne  and  Lafayette  to  destruction.  The  falling 
back  of  Tarleton's  outposts  was  intended  to  convey  the  impression  that 
nothing  but  the  rear- guard  of  the  British  remained  on  this  side  of  the 
James,  and  that  it  was  in  no  condition 'to  resist  beyond  the  bank  of  the 
river  under  cover  of  the  shipping.  In  the  woods  the  infantry  pickets 


62  THE    YORKTOWN    CAMPAIGN. 

made  a  stand,  to  confirm  the  impression  that  they  were  finally  forced  to 
fight,  whereas,  in  reality,  Cornwallis  had  ordered  them  to  hold  their  posi 
tion,  in  order  to  conceal  the  main  army  from  vie\v,  lying  in  open  ground 
immediately  behind.  Some  sharp  work  seems  to  have  been  done  here. 
The  riflemen,  says  Lafayette,  "threw  down"  successively  three  officers 
commanding  the  enemy's  picket;  and  Captain  Graham,  of  the  Seventy- 
sixth  Foot,  confirms  tin's  in  his  "Memoirs,"  as  follows:  "The  picket- 
a'uard  of  Colonel  Dundas's  brigade,  consisting  of  men  of  the  Seventv- 

c*  o  /  o  f 

sixth  Regiment,  commanded  by  Lieutenant  Bain  eaves,  an  officer  of  the 
Eightieth  Regiment,  was  ordered  to  resist  as  long  as  possible,  which  they 
did  for  a  length  of  time.  The  lieutenant  was  killed;  and  Lieutenant 
Alston,  of  the  same  regiment,  having  taken  the  command,  was  severely 
wounded ;  and  after  him  Ensign  AVemyss,  of  the  Seventy-sixth,  was  also 
wounded,  when  the  picket  received  orders  to  retire."  It  will  be  noticed 
that  in  his  General  Orders,  and  in  his  letter  to  General  Greene  of  July 
8th,  Lafayette  compliments  the  riflemen  on  the  gallantry  and  skill  dis 
played  by  them  on  this  occasion. 

About  five  o'clock  in  the  afternoon,  accordingly,  we  find  Wayne  and 
his  detachment  of  five  hundred  men  engaged  within  a  short  distance  of 
Cornwallis  and  all  his  army,  Simcoe's  Rangers  excepted.  Wayne,  of 
course,  did  not  dream  that  his  position  was  so  hazardous.  On  the  other 
hand,  Cornwallis  was  uncertain  what  force  supported  the  American  rifle 
men  ;  and  while  he  could  readily  have  crushed  Wayne  at  four  o'clock, 
he  postponed  an  advance  until  he  was  assured  that  there  was  something 
in  his  front  worth  striking  at. 

Meanwhile,  shortly  before  five  o'clock,  the  Light  Infantry  and  the  two 
remaining  Pennsylvania  battalions,  Butler's  and  Hampton's,  with  some 
artillery,  arrived  at  the  Green  Spring  Farm,  "  by  a  most  rapid  move," 
from  Norrell's  Mills.  Lafayette  now  had  with  him  at  the  front  all  his 
veteran  Continentals,  who,  though  a  match  for  any  equal  force  of  the 
enemy,  were  quite  unequal  to  the  force  Cornwallis  could  just  then  draw 
up  scarce  a  mile  in  advance.  Had  the  former  been  firmly  convinced  that 
the  greater  part  of  the  British  army  had  actually  crossed  the  river,  and 
accepted  the  resistance  of  the  picket  line  in  front  of  the  riflemen  as  proof 
of  the  fact,  we  should  doubtless  have  seen  him  marching  his  united  body 
of  Continentals  immediately  upon  the  enemy,  and  taking  advantage  of  the 
remaining  daylight  to  deliver  his  meditated  blow.  But,  instead  of  this, 
he  sent  forward  to  Wayne,  across  the  morass,  only  the  Pennsylvanians 
and  Gimat's  battalion  of  light  infantry,  under  Major  Wyllys,  of  Connec 
ticut.  The  two  other  battalions  of  infantry,  Vose's  and  Barber's,  he 


CORXWALLIS   AND   LAFAYETTE    IN    V1KUIXIA.  63 

formed  in  line  as  a  reserve  at  Green  Spring.  This  indicated  caution.  It 
appears,  indeed,  that  Lafayette  had  graver  doubts  in  regard  to  the  weak 
ness  of  the  enemy  than  either  Wavne  or  any  other  officer  in  his  army 

»/«/!/  J 

who  had  the  means  of  judging.  The  very  obstinacy  of  their  picket  line 
in  covering  their  position  excited  his  suspicion.  To  satisfy  himself  as 
far  as  possible  by  personal  observation,  he  left  his  command  for  a  short 
time,  and,  riding  to  a  tongue  of  land  at  the  river's  bank,  discovered  that 
the  enemy  had  made  a  parade  of  the  few  troops  who  had  crossed  over 
"in  such  a  manner  as  to  appear  numerous."  At  once  he  returned  "with 
all  possible  haste,''  with  the  purpose  of  declining  a  general  action.  By 
quietly  and  rapidly  withdrawing  Wayne  to  Green  Spring  from  the  front, 
\vhere  the  riflemen  were  still  engaged  as  a  cover,  he  could  have  made 
good  his  retreat  during  the  night,  in  case  Cornwallis  should  attempt  to 
pursue  and  force  an  engagement. 

It  was  at  this  interesting  moment,  during  the  brief  absence  of  Lafa}'- 
ette,  that  the  serious  action  of  the  day  was  precipitated.  While  the  re 
ports  of  the  affair  fail  to  agree  exactly  as  to  the  opening  incidents,  its  gen 
eral  features  are  satisfactorily  described.  Cornwallis,  writing  to  Clinton, 
says:  "Nothing,  however,  appeared  near  us  but  riflemen  and  militia  till 
near  sunset,  when  a  body  of  Continentals,  with  artillery,  began  to  form  in 
the  front  of  our  camp.  I  then  put  the  troops  under  arms,  and  ordered 
the  army  to  advance  in  two  lines.  The  attack  was  begun  by  the  first 
line  with  great  spirit.  There  being  nothing  but  militia  opposed  to  the 
light  infantry,  the  action  was  soon  over  on  the  right.  But  Lieutenant- 
colonel  Dundas's  brigade,  consisting  of  the  Forty-third,  Seventy-sixth,  and 
Eightieth  Regiments,  which  formed  the  left  wing,  meeting  the  Pennsylva 
nia  line,  and  a  detachment  of  the  Marquis  de  la  Fayette's  Continentals, 
with  two  six-pounders,  a  smart  action  ensued  for  some  minutes,  when  the 
enemy  gave  way,  and  abandoned  their  cannon.  The  cavalry  were  per 
fectly  ready  to  pursue;  but  the  darkness  of  the  evening  prevented  my 
being  able  to  make  use  of  them."  The  facts  are  here  presented  with  sub 
stantial  accuracy,  but  the  true  merits  of  the  action  do  not  appear.  Com 
paring  Lafayette's  and  Wayne's  reports,  we  find  that  the  enemy's  success 
is  qualified  by  the  admirable  conduct  of  the  American  troops  engaged. 
It  was  an  action  in  which  the  latter  found  themselves  suddenly  attacked 
by  the  entire  British  army,  and  yet  skilfully  avoided  disaster. 

It  is  not  clear  from  Wayne's  report  what  particular  movement  on  his 
part  finally  induced  Cornwallis.  after  the  two  hours'  picket  firing,  to  ad 
vance  his  main  body.  "At  three  o'clock,''  he  states,  "the  riflemen,  sup 
ported  by  a  few  regulars,  began  and  kept  up  a  galling  fire  upon  the  en- 


(i±  THE    VORKTOWN   CAMPAIGN. 

emy,  which  continued  until  five  in  the  evening,  when  the  British  began  to 
move  forward  in  columns.  The  marquis,  anxious  to  view  them  near,  had 
proceeded  rather  far  upon  their  left.  It  was,  therefore,  thought  proper 
to  order  Major  Galvan,  at  the  head  of  the  advanced  guard,  to  meet  and 
attack  their  front;  who,  after  a  spirited  though  unequal  contest,  retired 
upon  our  left."  This  Major  Galvan,  introduced  as  beginning  the  engage 
ment  proper,  led  a  small  detachment  of  fifty  or  sixty  Light  Infantry,  and 
with  them  supported  the  riflemen  in  the  skirmishing  of  the  afternoon. 
In  Lafayette's  report  the  major  and  his  party  figure  more  prominently. 
According  to  the  marquis,  Galvan  was  directed  by  Wayne,  while  the  for 
mer  was  making  observations  at  the  river  bank,  to  attempt  the  capture  of 
a  piece  of  artillery  which  the  enemy  had  placed  in  an  exposed  position. 
Galvan  at  the  skirmish  line  made  the  attempt  in  a  dashing  manner; 
whereupon,  says  Lafayette,  "  the  whole  British  army  came  out  and  ad 
vanced  to  the  thin  wood  occupied  by  General  Wayne."  This  was  the 
beginning  of  the  real  work  of  the  day,  and  in  twenty  minutes  it  was  over. 
Cornwallis,  assured,  either  by  Galvan's  demonstration  or  by  previous 
actual  observation,  that  Lafayette's  Continentals  were  now  in  his  front, 
moved  his  troops  forward  in  two  lines.1  The  light  infantry,  under  Lieu 
tenant-colonel  Yorke,  formed  the  right  of  the  front  line,  and  Lieutenant- 
colonel  Dundas's  brigade,  composed  of  the  Forty-third,  Seventy-sixth,  and 
Eightieth  Regiments,  the  left.  The  Guards,  T\yenty-third,  Thirty-third, 
and  Hessians,  with  Tarleton's  Legion,  which  fell  back  through  intervals 
made  by  the  infantry,  formed  the  second  line.  Upon  the  other  side, 
Wayne  was  also  preparing  for  an  advance  with  the  re-enforcements  which 
had  just  reached  him.  Making  Stewart's  battalion  his  centre,  he  placed 
the  two  other  Pennsylvania  battalions  upon  its  right  and  left,  while 
Gimat's  light  infantry,  composed  mainly  of  Connecticut  companies,  un 
der  Major  Wyllys,  continued  the  line  to  the  right.  Two  field -pieces, 
under  Captain  Duffy  and  Captain -lieutenant  Crossley,  of  Pennsylvania, 
and  a  third  under  Captain  Joseph  Savage,  of  Massachusetts,  were  the 
only  artillery  at  hand.  Hardly  nine  hundred  men  could  Wayne  count 
in  his  line  at  this  critical  moment;  hardly,  too,  had  he  formed  it  when 
the  riflemen  were  found  retreating  rapidly  upon  his  left,  followed  soon 
after  by  Galvan's  "advanced  guard"  retiring  before  the  British  advance. 
It  would  appear,  also,  that  Wyllys  and  his  light  infantry  on  the  right 
had  been  advanced,  but  were  obliged  to  fall  back  into  line  again.  Wayne 


1  Tarleton  states  that  the  British  army  advanced  "  upon  the  first  cannon-shot  from 
the  enemy." 


CORN  \YALLIS   AND   LAFAYETTE   IX    V1KG1XIA.  65 

then  perceived  that  lie  was  confronted  by  the  entire  force  of  the  enemy, 
whose  line  overlapped  and  endangered  his  flanks.  Instant  decision  was 
necessary  as  to  the  proper  move  to  make.  A  sudden  retreat  might  end 
in  panic.  To  await  the  shock  of  the  approaching  enemy  would  be 
ruinous.  It  was  "a  choice  of  difficulties,"  says  Wayne;  and  under  such 


UKNEUAL    ANTHONY    WAYNE.       [  TKKMBUU,.] 

circumstances  his  choice  was  never  uncertain.  With  the  instinct  of  a 
leader  and  the  courage  of  a  lion,  he  determined  to  become  the -assailant 
— to  advance  and  charge.  Could  the  British  be  surprised  and  checked 
in  the  first  instance,  a  final  retreat  would  be  effected  with  greater  safety. 
The  movement  was  successful,  though  costly.  Wayne's-  line  hastened 
forward,  under  a  fire  of  musketry  and  grape-shot,  to-  within  seventy 

5 


66  THE   YORKTOWN   CAMPAIGN. 

yards  of  the  enemy,  when  both  combatants  came  to  a  stand,  and  for 
fifteen  minutes  a  sharp  and  well -contested  action  occurred.  Dundas's 
brigade,  immediately  opposed  to  Wayne,  was  encouraged  by  Cornwallis 
in  person  ;  and  Lafayette,  who  returned  from  the  river  to  give  the  order 
for  retreat,  exposed  himself  at  the  front,  when  he  saw  that  Wayne  had 
become  engaged.  A  horse  led  by  his  side  was  shot,  while  nearly  every 
field-officer  was  dismounted.  The  exchange  of  fire  continued  brisk  and 
destructive.  All  the  horses  of  Duffy's  and  Crossley's  guns  were  killed 
or  disabled,  and  Cross! ey  himself,  with  six  or  seven  other  Pennsylvania 
officers,  was  wounded,  while  men  were  falling  rapidly.  Wayne  was  mak 
ing  a  brave  fight  against  heavy  numbers,  but  it  could  only  be  of  short 
duration.  The  right  of  the  enemy's  line,  having  nothing  but  the  re 
treating  riflemen  and  advance  parties  before  it,  threatened  to  envelop 
the  Americans;  and,  the  pressure  on  their  front  increasing,  they  aban 
doned  the  field  and  retreated  rapidly  through  the  woods  and  across 
the  morass  to  Green  Spring,  where  they  were  re-formed  under  cover 
of  Vose's  and  Barber's  light  infantry,  drawn  up  as  a  reserve  at  that 
place.  The  lateness  of  the  hour  prevented  the  enemy's  horse  from 
pursuing.1 

Lafayette  remained  at  Green  Spring  several  hours,  and  then  fell 
back  before  daylight  to  Chickahominy  Church.  Lawson's  riflemen  were 
placed  in  advance,  and  on  the  7th  the  dispositions  were  such  that  re 
treat  before  the  enemy,  had  they  been  disposed  to  follow  up  their  ad 
vantage,  could  have  been  effected  without  further  loss.  The  casualties 


1  Captain  Davis  and  Lieutenant  Felt  man,  of  the  Pennsylvania  lino,  describe  this 
action  briefly  in  nearly  similar  terms.  The  former's  account,  as  printed  in  the  Villa;/'' 
Record,  Westch ester,  Penn.,  is  as  follows:  ''Marched  at  5  o'clock  A.M.  for  Jamestown, 
where  the  enemy  at  this  time  lay  in  force.  When  the  army  had  advanced  within  five 
miles  of  this  town,  the  First  Pennsylvania  Battalion  was  detached,  witli  a  number  of 
riflemen,  to  Green  Springs,  which  brought  on  a  scattering  fire  that  continued  for  three 
hours,  when  a  body  of  light  infantry  came  with  the  other  two  battalions  of  Pennsyl 
vania  troops.  The  line  was  displayed,  and  we  advanced;  by  this  time  the  enemy  was 
meeting  us,  when  a  general  action  ensued.  At  the  distance  of  one  hundred  yards  we 
charged  on  their  main  body,  under  a  heavy  and  incessant  fire  of  grape  and  canister 
shot;  at  this  instant  we  opened  our  musketry.  Their  right  flanking  our  left,  a  retreat 
was  found  necessary;  with  the  loss  of  two  pieces  of  artillery,  we  retired  to  a  church, 
where  we  lay  this  night," 

Compare  extracts  from  Captain  Davis's  papers,  published  in  Penn.  Magazine  of  His 
tory,  1881 ;  also  Lafayette's  report  to  Greene,  given  in  the  "Additional  Correspondence" 
of  the  American  edition  of  Lafayette's  "Memoirs,"  vol.  i.,  p.  525.  Wayne's  report  is  in 
Sparks'  "Correspondence  of  the  Revolution." 


CORNWALLIS   AND  LAFAYETTE   IN   VIRGINIA.  f>7 

on  the  Otli  were  considerable,  amounting  to  four  sergeants  and  twenty- 
four  rank  and  file  killed;  five  captains,  one  captain  -  lieutenant,  four 
lieutenants,  seven  sergeants  and  eighty -two  rank  and  file  wounded,  in 
addition  to  a  few  riflemen  whose  number  was  not  ascertained.  Twelve 
were  reported  missing,  making  a  total  loss  of  about  one  hundred  and 
forty  -five.1  Two  of  the  guns,  one  of  which  had  bean  captured  at  the 
Battle  of  Bennington,  were  left  on  the  field.  The  enemy's  loss  was 
reported  at  seventy -five  killed  and  wounded,  five  of  the  latter  being 
officers. 

Though  defeated  in  this  affair,  Lafayette  lost  nothing  in  reputation. 
The  criticism  that  he  exposed  his  army  to  destruction,  when  so  much 
depended  upon  keeping  it  intact,  is  hardly  supported  by  the  facts.  As 
to  his  personal  responsibility,  while  he  had  suffered  Wayne  to  advance 
close  to  the  enemy,  under  the  impression  that  the  latter  was  not  in  force, 
he  proceeded  to  reconnoitre  before  precipitating  an  encounter.  During 
his  absence  the  responsibility  rested  with  the  dashing  Wayne,  whose  ap 
peal  was  always  to  the  sword.  By  the  joint  efforts  and  gallantry  of  both 
leaders  the  nearly  overpowered  advance  was  extricated  from  its  dangerous 
position.  Xor,  under  the  most  unfavorable  turn,  could  Lafayette  have 
lost  more  than  a  third  of  his  Continentals.  Two -thirds  of  the  Lig-ht 

O 

Infantry  were  on  the  Green  Spring  side  of  the  morass,  and  many  of 
Wayne's  men,  even  if  driven  in  total  rout,  could  undoubtedly  have  es 
caped  to  the  same  side,  where,  under  cover  of  the  night,  safe  retreat  and 
junction  with  the  militia  were  possible.  The  troops  engaged  were  con 
scious  that  they  had  acquitted  themselves  well ;  and  what  Lafayette 
thought  of  them  is  a  matter  of  record,  expressed  in  his  General  Or 
ders,  as  follows : 

"Ambler's  Plantation,  opposite  James  River,  July  8, 1731. 

"The  General  is  happy  in  acknowledging  the  spirit  of  the  detachment  commanded 
by  General  Wayne,  in  their  engagement  with  the  total  of  the  British  army,  of  which  he 
happened  to  be  an  eye-witness.  He  requests  General  Wayne,  the  officers  and  men 
under  his  command,  to  receive  his  best  thanks. 

"  The  bravery  and  destructive  fire  of  the  riflemen  engaged  rendered  essential  service. 

"The  brilliant  conduct  of  Major  Gnlvan  and  the  Continental  detachment  under  his 
command  entitle  them  to  applause. 

''The  conduct  of  the  Pennsylvania  field  and  other  officers  are  new  instances  of  their 
gallantry  and  talents. 

"The  fire  of  the  light  infantry  under  Major  Willis  [WyllysJ  checked  the  enemy's 
progress  round  our  right  flank. 

"The  General  was  much  pleased  with  the  conduct  of  Captain  Savage,  of  the  artil- 


1  See  return  of  American  loss  in  Appendix. 


68  THE  YOKKTOWN  CAMPAIGN. 

lery ;  and  it  is  with  pleasure,  also,  he  observes  that  nothing  but  the  loss  of  horses  could 
have  produced  that  of  the  field-pieces. 

"  The  zeal  of  Colonel  Mercer's  little  corps  is  handsomely  expressed  in  the  number 
of  horses  he  had  killed."  l 

When  Greene  heard  of  the  affair  lie  wrote  this  to  Wayne:  "It  gives 
me  great  pleasure  to  hear  of  the  success  of  my  friends;  but  be  a  little 
careful  and  tread  softly,  for,  depend  upon  it,  you  have  a  modern  Hanni 
bal  to  deal  with  in  the  person  of  Lord  Cornwallis."2 

There  now  came  a  pause  in  the  Virginia  Campaign,  at  least  in  daily 
operations  and  excitements.  The  State  north  of  the  James  was  relieved. 
Cornwallis  crossed  to  the  south  side,  at  Cobham,on  the  Tth  ;  and  Lafayette, 
retiring  up  the  river,  encamped,  about  the  20th,  on  the  now  historic  Mal- 
vern  Hill,  then  described  as  one  of  the  healthiest  and  best  watered  spots 
in  the  State.  Wayne  and  Morgan,  who  had  but  just  joined  the  American 
carnp,  manoeuvred  in  the  direction  of  Petersburg  and  Amelia  County  to 
threaten  Tarleton,  who,  on  the  9th,  was  despatched  by  Cornwall!*  to  de 
stroy  magazines  and  private  stores  as  far  as  Xew  London,  in  Bedford 
County.  Tarleton,  however,  accomplished  nothing,  and,  after  a  march 
of  four  hundred  miles,  returned  in  a  weakened  condition  to  Suffolk, 
where  Cornwallis  remained  with  a  portion  of  his  force  to  receive  him. 
The  entire  British  army  was  soon  after  concentrated  at  Portsmouth,  and 
preparations  made  to  transport  a  considerable  portion  of  it  to  New 
York. 

Lafayette,  meanwhile,  at  Malvern  Hill,  could  only  await  developments. 
He  thought  of  sending  re-enforcements  to  Greene,3  and  asked  Washing 
ton  if,  in  case  Cornwallis  left  Virginia,  he  might  not  return  to  the  North 
ern  army.  His  opinion  as  to  results  in  his  department  i^  stated  in  a  let 
ter  of  the  20th:  "That  the  subjugation  of  this  State,"  he  wrote  to  his 
chief,  "  was  the  great  object  of  the  ministry  is  an  indisputable  fact.  I 

1  American  accounts  of  the  Green  Spring  action  are  generally  based  on  that  given 
in  Lee's  "Memoirs,"  who  shares  Tarleton's  belief  that  Lafayette  had  a  narrow  escape. 
But,  while  Lee  is  to  be  accepted  as  good  authority,  he  certainly  was  misled  into  several 
important  errors  in  this  case.    He  puts  all  Lafayette's  Continentals  in  the  action,  where 
as  but  little  more  than  half  were  there.     Nor  was  Steuben  with  the  army,  nor  the  mi 
litia  near  the  battle-ground. 

2  From  the  Wayne  papers,  in  Casket. 

3  "I  am  happy,"  wrote  Lafayette  to  Steuben,  July  10th,  "that  the  north  shore  of 
James  River  is  at  length  freed  of  the  enemy.     As  soon  as  I  am  well  ascertained  of  their 
motions  I  shall  advise  you.     In  my  opinion  it  becomes  every  day  more  necessary  to 
think  seriously  of  supporting  General  Greene." — Gdtes-MS. 


CORNWALLIS  AND   LAFAYETTE   IN   VIRGINIA.  69 

think  your  diversion  has  been  of  more  use  to  the  State  than  my  ma- 
noeuvres;  but  the  latter  have  been  much  directed  by  political  views.  So 
long  as  my  lord  wished  for  an  action,  not  one  gnn  has  been  fired  ;  the 
moment  he  declined  it,  we  have  been  skirmishing ;  but  I  took  care  never  to 
commit  the  army.  His  naval  superiority,  his  superiority  of  horse,  of  reg 
ulars,  his  thousand  advantages  over  us — so  that  I  am  lucky  to  have  come 
off  safe.  I  had  an  eye  upon  European  negotiations,  and  made  it  a  point- 
to  give  his  Lordship  the  disgrace  of  a  retreat."  And  then  he  praises  his 
Light  Infantry,  not  one  of  whom  had  deserted  in  Virginia,  and  whose 
presence,  he  believed,  had  saved  the  State. 

But  while  the  marquis  and  Washington  and  Greene  were  speculating 
on  the  future  movements  of  Cornwnllis,  and  were  persuaded,  from  em 
barkations  at  Portsmouth,  that  he  was  to  be  deprived  of  a  large  part  of 
his  force  by  Clinton,  unexpected  intelligence  came  to  hand.  Instead  of 
any  part  going  to  New  York,  the  British  force  suddenly  made  its  appear 
ance,  during  the  first  days  in  August,  at  Yorktown,  on  the  Virginia  pen 
insula,  which  it  had  abandoned  but  three  weeks  before.  Here  again  was 
a  new  situation.  Cornwallis,  at  last,  at  Yorktown — the  spot  he  was  not 
to  leave  except  as  a  prisoner  of  war1. 

Why  he  went  there  is  a  simple  explanation.  Clinton  decided,  upon 
certain  dissenting  opinions  expressed  by  Cornwallis  respecting  the  situa 
tion  in  Virginia,  not  to  withdraw  the  force  in  the  Chesapeake  which  he 
had  called  for,  and  which  was  about  to  sail  for  New  York,  but  permitted 
Cornwallis  to  retain  the  whole  —  all  with  which  he  had  been  pursuing 
Lafayette  and  the  large  garrison  at  Portsmouth,  a  total  of  about  seven 
thousand,  rank  and  file.  His  new  instructions,  conveyed  at  the  same 
time,  were  to  the  effect  that  his  Lordship  should  abandon  Portsmouth, 
which  both  generals  agreed  was  too  unhealthy  for  the  troops,  and  fortify 
Old  Point  Comfort,  where  Fort  Monroe  now  stands,  as  a  naval  station  for 
the  protection  of  the  British  shipping.  In  addition,  if  it  appeared  neces 
sary,  for  the  better  security  of  the  Point,  to  occupy  Yorktown  also,  that 
was  to  be  done.  Obeying  these  instructions,  Cornwallis  ordered  a  survey 
of  Old  Point  Comfort;  but,  upon  the  report  of  his  engineers,  was  obliged 
to  represent  to  Clinton  that  it  was  wholly  unfit  and  inadequate  for  a 
naval  station,  as  it  afforded  little  protection  for  ships,  and  could  not  com 
mand  the  channel,  on  account  of  its  great  width.  Then,  following  what 
he  believed  to  be  the  spirit  of  his  orders,  Cornwallis,  before  hearing  from 
Clinton,  moved  up  to  Yorktown,  and  began  to  fortify  it,  in  connection 
with  Gloucester,  on  the  opposite  shore,  as  the  best  available  naval  station. 
Clinton  made  no  subsequent  objections,  and  there  Cornwallis  remained 


70  THE   YORKTOWN   CAMPAIGN. 

until  his  surrender.  Ills  occupation  of  the  place  was  simply  an  incident 
of  the  campaign — a  move  taken  for  convenience  and  in  the  interests  of 
the  navy  and  the  health  of  his  command.1 


1  Clinton  afterward  insisted  that  Cornwallis  violated  his  orders  in  going  to  York- 
town,  claiming  that  he  was  to  occupy  Yorktown  only  on  condition  he  held  Old  Point 
Comfort  also.  He  leaves  the  inference  that,  if  the  latter  place  could  not  be  fortified, 
Cornwallis  should  have  reported  the  fact,  and  not  moved  until  receiving  further 'orders 
from  New  York.  It  is  a  question  whether  Cornwallis,  had  he  taken  post  at  the  Point, 
could  not  have  escaped  by  crossing  to  Portsmouth  the  moment  he  learned  of  the  arrival 
of  the  French  fleet ;  in  this  case  Clinton's  charge  that  he  .disobeyed  orders  has  some 
force. 


WASHINGTON   IN   THE   CAMPAIGN.  71 


CHAPTER   IV. 

WASHINGTON   IN  THE   CAMPAIGN.— PLANS  AND  MOVEMENTS   OX  THE   HUDSON.— 
CO-OPERATION   OF   THE   FRENCH. 

BUT,  to  complete  the  chain  of  incidents  which  finally  entangled  Corn- 
wallis  in  the  fatal  York  town  meshes,  we  must  change  the  scene  four 
hundred  miles  to  the  northward,  and  cross  into  the  camps  of  the  Ameri 
cans  and  their  "generous  allies,"  the  French.  Something  of  consequence 
is  meantime  going  on  there.  An  unexpected  act  unfolds  in  this  military 
drama. 

Washington,  who,  with  a  wretchedly  clothed  and  often  but  half-fed 
army,  had  been  sustaining  the  cause  of  the  Revolution  through  six  anx 
ious  years,  never  felt  the  embarrassments  of  his  situation  more  keenly  than 
in  the  early  part  of  the  year  1781.  lie  could  do  little  to  assist  the  South, 
and  saw  no  flattering  prospects  of  achieving  anything  important  in  the 
Xorth.  The  long  continuance  of  the  war  had  produced  a  certain  degree 
of  apathy  in  the  States,  and  the  army  could  with  difficulty  be  kept  at  re 
spectable  numbers.  Men  were  unwilling  to  serve  for  long  terms;  the 
farmers  dreaded  camp  life,  and  wished  to  be  at  home  in  the  spring;  the 
population  at  large  believed  that  the  crisis  was  passed,  and  that  peace 
would  eventually  come  by  a  show  of  opposition,  or  that  in  case  of  a  great 
emergency,  like  Burgoyne's  invasion,  the  uprising  of  the  militia  would 
carry  the  day.  Moreover,  the  whole  civil  system,  on  which  the  support 
of  the  military  depended,  was  loose  and  vexingly  slow  in  its  operation. 
The  powers  and  resources  of  the  Continental  Congress  were  limited  by 
the  willingness  and  alacrity  of  the  State  government  to  answer  its  calls. 
There  was  no  strong  central  authority,  and  the  cause  suffered  from  want 
of  it. 

The  almost  ruinous  effect  of  this  absence  of  means  and  system  is 
vividly  presented  by  Washington  in  his  military  journal.  '•  Instead  of 
having  magazines  tilled  with  provisions,"  runs  the  lirst  entry  in  May, 
1781,  uwe  have  a  scanty  pittance  scattered  here  and  there  in  the  different 


72  THE  YORKTOWN  CAMPAIGN. 

States.  Instead  of  having  our  arsenals  well  supplied  with  military  stores, 
they  are  poorly  provided,  and  the  workmen  all  leaving  them.  .  .  .  Instead 
of  having  a  regular  system  of  transportation  upon  credit,  or  funds  in  the 
quartermaster's  hands  to  defray  the  contingent  expenses  of  it,  we  have 
neither  the  one  nor  the  other ;  and  all  that  business,  or  a  great  part  of  it, 
being  done  by  military  impress,  we  are  daily  and  hourly  oppressing  the 
people — souring  their  tempers  and  alienating  their  affection.  Instead  of 
having  the  regiments  completed  to  the  new  establishment,  scarce  any 
State  in  the  Union  has,  at  this  hour,  an  eighth  part  of  its  quota  in  the 
field,  and  little  prospect,  that  I  can  see,  of  ever  getting  more  than  half.  In 
a  word,  instead  of  having  everything  in  readiness  to  take  the  field,  we 
have  nothing;  and  instead  of  having  the  prospect  of  a  glorious  offensive 
campaign  before  usrwe  have  a  bewildered  and  gloomy  defensive  one,  un 
less  we  should  receive  a  powerful  aid  of  ships,  land  troops,  and  money 
from  our  generous  .allies ;  and  these,  at  present,  are  too  contingent  to 
build  upon." 

It  needs  but  a  reference  to  the  military  situation  to  show  how  accu 
rately  Washington  had  described  it.  While  Sir  Henry  Clinton,  at  New 
York,  notwithstanding  the  detachments  sent  to  the  Chesapeake,  still  re 
tained  a  force  of  ten  thousand  five  hundred  men,  both  regulars  and  pro 
vincials,  the  American  army  on  the  Hudson,  quartered  around  West  Point, 
numbered  scarcely  three  thousand  five  hundred  Continentals.  These 
were  mainly  of  the  New  England  line.  The  New  York  regiments  were 
stationed  above  along  the  frontier,  the  New  Jersey  in  their  own  State; 
and  the  greater  part  of  the  Pennsylvanians  were  with  Lafayette.  The 
Continentals  from  the  States  to  the  southward  composed  Greene's  army; 
while  the  French  corps  under  Count  Rochambeau,  about  four  thousand 
effectives,  was  encamped  at  Newport,  Rhode  Island.  The  single  point 
against  which  offensive  operations  could  be  directed  in  the  ]North  was 
New.  York,  and  success  there,  with  the  force  then  available,  appeared 
doubtful.  Through  the  clouded  prospect  the  only  ray  of  hope  visible  was 
a  probable  increase  of  the  American  army,  and  the  possibility  that  in  the 
course  of  the  season  a  second  division  of  French  troops,  accompanied  by 
a  large  fleet,  wTould  appear  upon  the  American  coast,  with  whose  assist 
ance  something  might  be  effected. 

A  campaign,  nevertheless,  was  arranged.  On  the  22d  of  May,  by  pre 
vious  appointment,  Washington,  in  company  with  Generals  Knox  and 
Duportail,  met  Rochambeau  and  the  Chevalier  de  Chastellux,  one  of  his 
major-generals,  in  conference  at  Wethersfield,  Connecticut,  where,  after 
discussing  the  general  situation,  a  plan  of  operations  was  agreed  upon,  the 


GEORGE    WASHINGTON".       [FROM    THE    ORIGINAL    PORTRAIT    BY    TRUMBULL    IN    THE    YALE    ART    GALLERY, 

NEW    HAVEN.]    ' 


WASHINGTON   IN   THE   CAMPAIGN.  75 

outlines  of  which  were  reduced  to  writing.1  This  plan  was  of  an  alterna 
tive  character,  subject  to  extensive  modifications  as  circumstances  might 
require.  The  hostile  positions  at  that  time  each  presented  a  prominent 
assailable  point.  The  States,  as  already  seen,  were  weakest  at  the  South, 
where  the  enemy  were  operating  with  energy.  On  the  other  hand,  the 
British  were  weak  at  New  York — weaker,  at  least,  than  at  any  period 
during  the  war — and  to  a  vigilant  and  active  antagonist  invited  attack. 
Washington  had  long  been  anxious  to  re-enforce  the  Southern  army,  but 
was  utterly  powerless  to  do  so  if  operations  were  to  be  undertaken  by  his 
own  command  in  the  North.  Certain  important  considerations,  further 
more,  disinclined  him  either  to  lead  or  despatch  troops  to  such  a  distance. 
The  "insurmountable  difficulty  and  expense  of  land  transportation,"  the 
loss  of  men  in  long  marches,  objections  to  the  Southern  climate,  the  im 
possibility  of  tilling  up  the  regiments  destined  for  such  service,  and  the 
ease  and  rapidity  with  which  the  enemy  could  also  re-enforce  by  water 
transportation,  weighed  against  this  plan  of  assistance.  The  only  feasible 
method,  in  Washington's  judgment,  of  relieving  the  pressure  upon  Greene 
and  Lafayette  was  to  unite  the  French  forces  to  his  own  and  make  a  seri 
ous  demonstration  against  the  weakened  base  at  New  York,  where  a  com 
bined  attack  might  put  the  city  and  its  garrison  in  -his  hands.  This  alone 
would  be  an  important  blow,  whether  the  city  were  subsequently  held  or 
not;  or,  failing  in  this,  it  was  confidently  expected  that,  in  view  of  the 
attempt,  Clinton  would  recall  to  his  defence  a  considerable  part  of  the 
British  detachments  sent  to  the  southward,  which  would  also  be  an  accept 
able  result.  Or,  again,  future  developments,  such  as  a  French  naval  supe 
riority,  might  justify  a  general  movement  to  the  southward.  These  sev 
eral  contingencies  were  considered  at  Wetherstield,  but,  as  a  preliminary 
and  definite  basis  of  action,  it  was  agreed  between  the  respective  com 
manders  that  the  French  should  join  the  Americans  on  the  Hudson  at 
the  earliest  moment,  and  both  move  upon  New  York,  to  attempt  opera 
tions  as  circumstances  favored. 

This  was  the  Wethersfield  plan.  The  claim,  sometimes  loosely  as 
serted,  that  the  campaign  which  ended  in  the  splendid  combination  at 

1  From  Washington's  "Journal :"  "May  18th.— Set  out  this  day  for  the  interview  at 
Weathersfield  with  the  Count  dc  Rochambeau  and  Admiral  Barras  [the  latter  not  pres 
ent] — reached  Morgan's  Tavern,  forty-three  miles  from  Fishkill  Landing,  after  dining 
at  Colonel  Vandeberg's.  May  19th.— Breakfasted  at  Litchtield,  dined  at  Farming-ton,  and 
lodged  at  Weathersfield,  at  the  house  of  Joseph  Webb,  Esq.,  the  quarters  which  were 
taken  for  me  and  my  suit/'  Washington's  army  head-quarters  were  at  New  Windsor, 
above  West  Point. 


TO  THE    YOKKTOWN    CAMPAIGN. 

Yorktown  was  conceived  and  arranged  four  months  before  at  this  con 
ference,  cannot  be  sustained.  That  campaign  was  a  development,  not  an 
inspiration.  It  presents  Washington,  not  as  a  prophet,  but  as  a  general 
who  conducted  his  movements  upon  the  truest  military  principles.  For 
it  is  to  be  observed,  that  at  the  time  of  the  conference  in  question  infor 
mation  was  wanting  upon  two  principal  points.  Although,  from  inter 
cepted  letters,  suspicion  may  have  been  entertained  that  Cornwallis  would 
sooner  or  later  make  his  appearance  in  Virginia,  there  was  no  certainty 
in  the  matter,  and  intelligence  of  his  actual  invasion  of  the  State  did  not 
arrive  until  two  weeks  after  Washington  and  Rochambeau  had  returned 
to  their  respective  armies.  No  definite  campaign  could  thus  have  been 
devised  against  his  Lordship.  Furthermore,  uncertainty  existed  in  regard 
to  the  co-operation  of  a  French  naval  armament  to  neutralize  or  over 
come  that  of  the  enemy.  It  was  known  that  a  powerful  fleet,  under  Ad 
miral  de  Grasse,  had  recently  sailed  from  France  for  her  colonies  in  the 
West  Indies,  but  Washington  was  ignorant  of  its  future  movements,  or, 
in  case  it  had  been  ordered  to  the  American  coast,  of  the  time  it  might  be 
expected.  Much  as  he  hoped  for  its  assistance,  he  could  base  no  projects 
upon  it  at  Wethersfield — none,  certainly,  involving  immediate  co-opera 
tion.  How  far  it  was  considered,  and  what,  in  fine,  was  decided  at  Weth 
ersfield,  appears  with  sufficient  clearness  in  the  closing  interrogatory  and 
answer  given  in  the  record  of  the  interview: 

ROCHAMBEAU. — Should  the  squadron  from  the  West  Indies  arrive  in  these  seas — an 
event  which  will  probably  be  announced  by  a  frigate  beforehand— what  operations 
will  General  Washington  have  in  view,  after  a  union  of  the  French  army  with  his  own? 

WASHINGTON. — The  enemy,  by  several  detachments  from  New  York,  having  reduced 
their  force  at  that  post  to  less  than  one-half  of  the  number  which  they  had  at  the  time 
of  the  former  conference  at  Hartford,  in  September  last,  it  is  thought  advisable  to  form 
a  junction  of  the  French  and  American  armies  upon  the  North  River  as  soon  as  possi 
ble,  and  move  down  to  the  vicinity  of  New  York,  to  be  ready  to  take  advantage  of  any 
opportunity  which  the  weakness  of  the  enemy  may  afford.  Should  the  West  India 
fleet  arrive  upon  the  coast,  the  force  thus  combined  may  cither  proceed  in  the  operation 
against  Ne\v  York,  or  may  be  directed  against  the  enemy  in  some  other  quarter,  as  cir 
cumstances  shall  dictate.  The  great  waste  of  men  .  .  .  and  other  considerations  too 
well  known  to  Count  de  Rochambeau  to  need  detailing,  point  out  the  preference  which 
an  operation  against  New  York  seems  to  have  in  the  present  circumstances  over  an 
attempt  to  send  a  force  to  the  southward.1 

1  Sparks'  "Washington,"  vol.  viii.,  p.  518.  In  the  same  volume  (p.  62),  in  a  letter  to 
Greene,  June  1st,  Washington  writes:  "I  have  lately  had  an  interview  with  Count  de 
Rochambeau,  at  Weathersfield.  Our  affairs  were  very  attentively  considered  in  every 


WASHINGTON   IN   THE   CAMPAIGN.  77 

This  preliminary  plan  satisfactorily  fir  ran  god,  Rochambeaa  immedi 
ately  returned  to  Newport,  while  Washington  remained  in  Wethersfield 
one  day  longer — the  23d — and  wrote  urgent  letters  to  the  New  England 
irovernors,  emphasizing  the  necessity  of  tilling  their  Continental  regi 
ments  for  the  campaign,  warning  their  militia  to  inarch  at  a  week's  notice, 
if  called  for,  and  calling  for  a  liberal  supply  of  provisions,  powder,  and 
wagons  for  transportation.  Informing  them  in  confidence  of  the  medi 
tated  project  against  New  York,  and  the  impossibility  of  succeeding 
without  an  increase  of  force,  he  added:  "The  enemy,  counting  upon  our 
want  of  ability,  or  upon  our  want  of  energy,  have,  by  repeated  detach 
ments  to  the  southward,  reduced  themselves  in  New  York  to  a  situation 
which  invites  us  to  take  advantage  of  it;  and  should  the  lucky  moment 
be  lost,  it  is  to  be  feared  that  they  will,  after  subduing  the  Southern 
States,  raise  a  force  in  them  sufficient  to  hold  them,  and  return  again  to 
the  northward  with  such  a  number  of  men  as  will  render  New  York  se 
cure  against  any  force  which  we  can  at  this  time  raise  or  maintain.  Our 
allies  in  this  country  expect  and  depend  upon  being  supported  by  us  in 
the  attempt  which  we  are  about  to  make,  and  those  in  Europe  will  be 
astonished  should  we  neglect  the  favorable  opportunity  which  is  now 
offered."  From  the  same  place  he  also  wrote  to  the  Chevalier  de  la  Lu- 
zerne,  the  French  Minister,  at  Philadelphia,  in  regard  to  the  destination 
of  the  fleet  under  De  Grasse,  upon  which  everything  depended,  requesting 
him  in  earnest  terms,  both  in  his  own  name  and  that  of  Rochambeau,  to 
exert  his  influence  in  brin<nuo-  the  admiral  to  our  coast  in  season  to  en- 

o       o 

gage  in  offensive  operations.  Luzerne  replied  cordially,  promising  to 
communicate  with  De  Grasse.  "Be  persuaded,"  he  wrote  to  Washing 
ton,  "that  I  shall  use  the  most  pressing  motives  to  determine  him,  and  I 
shall  do  it  with  so  much  the  more  zeal  as  I  feel  the  necessity  of  it.  I 
shall  transmit  to  that  general  [the  admiral]  an  extract  of  your  letter ; 


point  of  view,  and  it  was  finally  determined  to  make  an  attempt  upon  New  York,  with 
its  present  garrison,  in  preference  to  a  southern  operation,  as  we  had  not  the  decided 
command  of  the  water.  You  will  readily  suppose  the  reasons  which  induced  this  de 
termination  were  the  inevitable  loss  of  men  from  so  long  u  march,  more  especially  in  the 
approaching  hot  season,  and  the  difficulty,  I  may  say  impossibility,  of  transporting  the 
necessary  baggage,  artillery,  and  stores  by  land.  If  I  am  supported  as  I  ought  to  be 
by  the  neighboring  States  in  this  operation,  which  you  know  has  always  been  their 
favorite  one,  I  hope  that  one  of  these  consequences  will  follow :  either  that  the  enemy 
will  be  expelled  from  the  most  valuable  position  which  they  hold  upon  the  Continent, 
or  be  obliged  to  recall  part  of  their  force  from  the  southward  to  defend  it.  Should 
the  latter  happen,  you  Avill  be  most  essentially  relieved  by  it." 


78  THE  YORKTOWN  CAMPAIGN. 

and  nothing  appears  to  me  more  likely  to  give  weight  to  the  demand 
which  I  shall  make  upon  him."  The  fact  is  brought  out  in  this  corre 
spondence  that  Washington,  Rochambeau,  and  Chastellux  were  "perfect 
ly"  agreed  that  when  it  came,  and  while  affairs  remained  as  they  were 
then,  the  French  fleet  should  run  to  Sandy  Hook,  where  it  conld  be  met 
with  all  the  information  requisite  either  to  facilitate  the  operations  in 
hand,  or  co-operate  in  any  other  more  practicable.  Luzerne  was  requested 
to  present  this  opinion  to  De  Grasse,  as  a  guide  in  case  he  proposed  com 
ing  to  the  American  coast  within  a  short  time.  Until  De  Grasse  could 
be  heard  from,  the  land  operations  were  to  be  pushed  independently 
against  Xew  York. 

Leaving  Wethersfield  in  the  forenoon  of  the  24th,  Washington  was 

o  o 

back  again  at  his  head-quarters  at  New  Windsor,  on  the  Hudson,  by  sun 
set  of  th'e  following  day.  His  entire  attention  was  now  devoted  to  the 
preparations  for  the  campaign.  Knox  and  Duportail,  the  chiefs  of  ar 
tillery  and  engineers,  \vere  instructed  to  put  their  departments  in  the  best 
train  for  the  coming  "siege"  of  JSTew  York;  the  troops  were  set  to  drill 
ing,  and  afterward  surprised  the  French  with  their  proficiency  and  disci 
pline;  and  outlying  Continental  detachments  were  ordered  to  hold  them 
selves  in  readiness  to  join  the  main  army.  Congress  was  appealed  to  for 
renewed  exertions,  while  encouragement  came  in  the  shape  of  news  from 
France  that,  as  the  King  could  not  at  this  juncture  send  more  troops  to 
America,  he  had  made  Congress  a  gift  of  six  million  livres,  to  be  applied 
in  part  to  the  purchase  of  arms  and  clothing  for  the  troops,  with  one  mill 
ion  five  hundred  thousand  of  the  surplus  to  be  at  Washington's  disposal. 
Further  relief  was  anticipated  and  experienced  by  the  appointment  of 
Robert  Morris,  of  Philadelphia,  as  Superintendent  of  Finance,  in  whose 
resources  and  patriotism  the  chief  had  the  greatest  confidence,  and  to 
whom  he  wrote  in  congratulation:  "My  hand  and  heart  shall  be  with 
you,  and  as  far  as  my  assistance  can  go,  command  it.  We  have,  I  am 
persuaded,  but  one  object  in  view,  the  public  good;  to  effect  which  I  will 
aid  your  endeavors  to  the  extent  of  my  abilities  and  with  all  the  pow 
ers  I  am  vested  with."  Matters  looked  promising,  but,  what  was  not 
an  unusual  experience,  when  active  movements  began  the  promise  had 
not  been  realized.  The  regiments  had  not  been  filled,  and  Washington's 
numbers  were  still  sadly  insufficient;  while  the  generous  grant  from 
Louis  XVI.  did  not  arrive  until  too  late  in  the  season  for  the  best  use  to 
which  it  might  have  been  applied.  Of  all  civilians  Morris  came  nearest 
to  fulfilling  expectations;  his  skill  and  energy  in  providing  ready  money 
for  pressing  wants  and  obtaining  supplies  on  credit,  helped  greatly  in 


WASHINGTON    IX    TIIK   CAMPAIGN.  T!» 

keeping  tlie  army  on  its  feet,  especially  during  the  latter  part  of  the 
campaign.1 

But  how  slowly  matters  progressed!  Five  months  between  the  Weth- 
ersfield  interview  and  the  Yorktown  surrender!  The  French  were  to  be 
at  the  Hudson  "as  soon  as  possible,"  but  that  meant  six  weeks.  But  two 
letters  came  from  Do  Grasse  throughout  the  entire  summer.  It  took  a 
month  to  hear  from  Greene;  ten  days  from  Lafayette.  Recruiting,  col 
lection  of  supplies,  and  transportation  went  on  pretty  much  at  snail's  pace, 
it  would  appear  to  us  to-day.  But  it  was  a  new  country — a  really  im 
mense  field,  a  scattered  population  ;  and,  besides,  there  was  the  sea  to  deal 
with,  its  storms,  cross-winds,  and,  above  all,  the  ponderous,  slow-moving 
men-of-war  of  that  period.  It  is  rather  to  be  wondered  how,  under  such 
circumstances,  extensive  combinations  succeeded  as  well  as  they  did,  and 
what  we  have  to  admire  is  the  masterly  patience  of  the  men  who  under 
took  and  carried  them  through. 

Toward  the  middle  of  June  certain  new  phases  attached  to  the  gen 
eral  situation,  which,  for  the  first  time,  brought  a  move  from  the  Hudson 
to  Virginia  within  the  range  of  probabilities.  Something  more  definite 
was  known  in  regard  to  those 'two  important  points  about  which  so  little 
was  known  at  Wethersfield.  First:  On  the  13th  of  June  letters  reached 
Washington  from  Rochambeau  containing  the  most  welcome  intelligence 
that  De  Grasse  had  finally  been  heard  from,  and  would  appear  in  Amer 
ican  waters  with  a  powerful  fleet  in  midsummer.  Here  was  all-impor 
tant  news,  "very  interesting  communications,''  as  Washington  wrote  back 
to  Rochambeau,  which  he  assured  the  latter  he  would  keep  perfectly  se 
cret.  From  this  time  all  movements  hinged  on  the  assistance  that  could 
be  given  by  this  fleet.  Second:  The  situation  in  the  South  had  likewise 
changed.  By  letters  received  from  Lafayette  and  others  on  the  4th,  7th, 
and  llth  of  June,  there  was  no  longer  any  doubt  that  Gornwallis,  aban- 

O  «/ 

doning  Xorth  Carolina  for  the  time  being,  had  undertaken  the  conquest 
of  Virginia,  and  was  then  apparently  carrying  all  before  him.  This  was 
bringing  the  Southern  contest  nearer  to  the  Xorthern  field,  and  move 
ments  there  would  have  a  more  direct  influence  upon  movements  around 
New  York.  Corn  wall  is  had  put  himself  where  he  was  to  be  actively 
watched,  not  only  by  Lafayette  and  Greene,  but,  to  a  certain  extent,  by 
Washington  as  well.  Indeed,  as  observed  in  connection  with  Lafavette's 


1  Writing  to  General  Gates,  September  oth,  Dr.  Rush,  of  Philadelphia,  says:  "Mr. 
Morris  lias  become  a  new  star  in  our  American  hemisphere.  Our  safety  consists  in  the 
number  of  our  great  men." — Gates  MS. 


80  THE   YOEKTOWN   CAMPAIGN. 

operations  in  Virginia,  strong  personal  influences  were  brought  to  bear 
upon  the  comniander-in-chief  to  send,  or  himself  proceed  with,  immediate 
relief  to  his  own  State.  Jefferson  and  Lee  had  written  him  pressingly 
on  the  subject,  arid  very  recently,  on  July  5th,  Governor  Ilutledge,  of 
South  Carolina,  had  visited  his  head-quarters  to  appeal  for  aid  for  that 
State.  These  changes  and  incidents  only  served  to  impress  more  deeply 
upon  Washington's  mind  the  necessity  of  immediate  active  movements 
on  his  own  part  to  help  protect  and  quiet  the  section  of  country  from 
which  the  cries  of  distress  were  coming  up. 

Under  these  new  conditions  the  single  question  which  presented  itself 
to  the  allied  commanders  was,  how  best  to  utilize  the  expected  fleet  and 
the  combined  land-forces  to  relieve  the  burdened  South,  and,  at  the  same 
time,  win  some  additional  great  and  permanent  advantage  for  America. 

The  gradual  solution  of  this  question  forms  one  of  the  most  interest 
ing  features  of  the  campaign.  What  De  Grasse  had  written  to  Rocham- 
beau — his  letter  being  dated  "at  sea,"  as  far  back  as  March  20th — was  lit 
tle  more  than  an  announcement  that  after  reaching  the  West  Indies  he 
should  sail  for  North  America,  where  he  could  not  arrive,  however,  be 
fore  the  15th  of  July,  if  as  early  as  that ;  and  that  if  his  fleet  was  to  co 
operate,  everything  should  be  in  readiness  for  immediate  action  upon  his 
arrival,  as  his  stay  upon  the  coast  must  be  sfyort.  For  what  point  he 
should  sail  it  "was  for  the  allied  commanders  to  determine.  This  letter 
was  received  by  Kochambeau  on  the  9th  of  June,  and  its  contents,  as 
stated,  transmitted  to  Washington.  A  reply  was  despatched  to  De  Grasse 
as  soon  as  possible  by  the  frigate  Concorde,  in  which  Rochambean  gave 
him  full  intelligence  concerning  "  the  plans  in  view,  and  also  the  strength, 
situation,  and  apparent  designs  of  the  enemy."  lie  recommended  him, 
further,  "to  enter  the  Chesapeake  on  his  way,  as  there  might  be  an  op 
portunity  of  striking  an  important  stroke  there,  and  then  to  proceed  im 
mediately  to  New  York,  and  be  ready  to  co-operate  with  the  allied  armies 
in  an  attack  upon  that  city."1  This  reply  substantially  reflected  Wash 
ington's  views,  as  it  was,  in  fact,  in  accordance  with  the  Wethersfield  plan, 
and  the  land-forces  proceeded  to  begin  their  part  in  the  intended  operations. 
At  these,  meanwhile,  we  may  glance  briefly  until  De  Grasse  is  heard  from 
again,  and  developments  are  reached  of  a  still  more  positive  character. 

It  was  not  until  the  first  week  in  July  that  the  Count  de  .Kochambeau, 
with  the  French  troops  from  Newport,  formed  a  junction  with  the  Amer- 

1  Sparks'  "  Washington,'-'  vol.  viii.,  p.  76,  note. 


WASHINGTON  IN  THE  CAMPAIGN. 


81 


icans  at  the  Hudson.  They  were  an  excellent  corps,  divided  into  four 
regiments  of  infantry,  a  battalion  of  artillery,  and  the  Duke  de  Lauzun's 
Legion  of  horse  and  foot.  The  infantry,  which  had  marched  from  New 
port  on  the  9th  of  June,  left  Providence  on  the  18th-21st  of  the  same 
month — the  regiments  following  each  other  after  a  day's  interval — and 


COUNT     DE    UOCHAMHKAU. 


took  the  direct  route  westward,  passing  through  the  Connecticut  towns  of 
Plainfield,  Canterbury,  Windhain,  Bolton,  Hartford,  Farmington,  South- 
ington,  Newtown,  and  Ridgebiiry,  and  through  Bedford  and  Northcastle 
to  White  Plains,  in  New  York.  Lauznn's  Legion,  which  was  quartered  at 
Lebanon,  Connecticut,  followed  a  lower  route,  through  Colchester,  Middle- 
town,  Wallingford,  Oxford,  North  Stratford,  and  Bedford.  The  inarch 

6 


82  THE  YOKKTOWN  CAMPAIGN. 

was  something  of  a  holiday  affair,  and  occasioned  the  liveliest  scenes  in 
the  various  towns  and  villages  on  the  route.  The  inhabitants  welcomed 
and  cheered  the  allies,  who  in  turn  preserved  the  best  of  order  and  com 
mitted  no  depredations. 

While  the  French  were  on  the  march  Washington  prepared  his  own 
army  for  the  junction,  and  by  the  24th  of  June  had  brigaded  it  anew  and 
gone  into  camp  near  Peekskill.  Here  he  had  proposed  to  await  Rocham- 
beau's  arrival,  but  on  the  28th,  the  opportunity  being  favorable,  he  con 
ceived  the  plan  of  opening  operations  by  a  sudden  attack  on  the  enemy's 
forts  at  the  north  end  of  Kew  York  Island,  the  possession  of  which 
would  simplify  subsequent  movements.  Major-general  Lincoln  was  in 
trusted  with  its  execution,  with  eight  hundred  good  troops,  including  the 
select  detachment  of  Light  Infantry,  four  hundred  strong,  under  Colonel 
Alexander  Scammell,  of  New  Hampshire,  and  Lieutenant-colonel  Hun- 
tington,  of  Connecticut,  and  another  battalion  under  Lieutenant-colonel 
Sprout,  of  Massachusetts.  They  were  to  descend  in  boats  on  the  night  of 
the  2d  of  July  and  surprise  and  hold  the  works  in  the  vicinity  of  King's 
Bridge,  even  storming  Forts  Try  on  and  Knyphausen  below,  but  not  re 
taining  them.  At  the  same  time  the  Duke  de  Lauzun.  with  his  Legion, 
and  General  Waterbury,  with  Connecticut  State  troops,  and  Sheldon's 
Dragoons,  were  to  cut  off  Delancey's  and  other  bodies  of  the  enemy  post 
ed  north  arid  east  of  the  bridge.  To  take  advantage  of  whatever  success 
might  be  gained,  Washington  proposed  to  march  down  the  river  with  all 
his  remaining  force  to  within  supporting  distance  at  Valentine's  Hill, 
while  Rochambeau  was  urged  to  hasten  his  inarch  to  the  same  point. 
Minute  instructions  were  issued  to  the  commanding  officers  of  the  detach 
ments  concerned,  and  the  strictest  secrecy  enjoined  as  to  the  proposed 
attacks. 

The  surprise  fiiled.  Lincoln's  orders  required  him  not  to  make  a 
landing  below  King's  Bridge,  if  upon  reconnoitring  from  the  Jersey  side 
he  found  the  plan  impracticable  or  his  movement  should  be  discovered, 
but  to  land  above  the  bridge  and  be  ready  to  co-operate  with  Lauzun's  at 
tack  upon  Delancey.  The  first  part  of  Lincoln's  plan  was  not  attempted, 
as  he  found  the  enemy's  ships  in  the  way.  He  accordingly  landed  above 
the  bridge.  Lau/un,  on  his  part,  made  a  forced  march  during  the  night 
of  the  2d  to  carry  out  his  enterprise,  but  "  the  fatigue  of  his  corps,"  says 
Washington,  "  prevented  his  coming  to  the  point  of  action  at  the  hour 
appointed,"  and  in  addition  Lincoln  had  been  attacked  by  a  party  of  the 
enemy,  which  gave  the  alarm  to  those  whom  Lauzun  was  to  surprise.  The 
French  duke  thereupon  promptly  moved  to  Lincoln's  support,  but  the 


WASHINGTON  IN  THE  CAMPAIGN.  83 

skirmish,  which  proved  a  brisk  one,  was  over,  and  the  enemy  were  retir 
ing.  Every  effort  was  made  to  renew  the  action  on  the  part  of  the  allies, 
but  without  success,  and  the  rest  of  the  day  was  devoted  by  the  com- 
mander-in-chief  to  reconnoitring  the  ground  and  works  around  and  be 
low  King's  Bridge.  On  the  following  day  the  American  troops  fell  back 
to  Dobb's  Ferry,  where  on  the  Oth  the  French  army  joined  them  and 
went  into  camp  on  their  left. 

While  this  could  hardly  have  been  regarded  as  an  auspicious  begin 
ning  of  the  movement  against  New  York,  it  opened  the  eyes  of  the  ene 
my  to  the  fact  that  Washington  had  suddenly  assumed  an  unusual  bold 
ness  and  confidence  which  was  to  be  treated  with  respect.  Sir  Henry 
Clinton  became  more  vigilant,  and,  indeed,  discovered  some  uneasiness, 
especially  as  a  little  later — July  21st-24th — Washington  made  a  thorough 
reconnoissance  in  force  of  all  the  northern  defences  of  the  island,  indicat 
ing  the  prosecution  of  siege  operations.  But  if  nothing  was  accomplished 
before  New  York,  as  no  fleet  had  arrived  to  co-operate,  the  very  impor 
tant  and  expected  result  was  brought  about,  that  Clinton  was  compelled 
to  call  for  re-enforcements  from  the  Chesapeake,  and,  for  the  time  being, 
cripple  Cornwallis  in  Virginia. 

Thus  matters  stood  in  the  early  days  of  August  —  little  done,  and 
the  future  uncertain — when,  on  the  1-ith  of  the  month,  word  came  again 
from  De  Grasse,  and  the  whole  scene  changed.  From  this  moment  a 
new  and  exciting  interest  attached  to  every  movement.  The  news  from 
the  admiral  put  another  face  on  the  situation  ;  for,  instead  of  announc 
ing  his  near  approach  to  New  York,  and  speedy  co-operation  with  the 
land-forces  against  the  city,  he  informed  Rochambeau  that  he  should 
sail  for  the  Chesapeake  Bay  direct,  on  the  13th  inst,  with  the  view 
of  undertaking  or  facilitating  operations  in  that  qi.irter,  rather  than 
at  New  York ;  and  that  he  hoped  that  the  troops  would  be  ready  upon 
his  arrival  for  immediate  activity,  as  he  must  return  to  the  West  Indies 
by  the  middle  of  October.  Nothing  remained,  accordingly,  but  to  fit 
everything  to  the  new  requirements  of  the  situation  and  look  —  south 
ward.  Washington  describes  the  change  as  follows  in  his  "  Journal :" 

<— '  O 

"  Matters  having  now  come  to  a  crisis,  and  a  decided  plan  to  be  de 
termined  on,  I  was  obliged  —  from  the  shortness  of  Count  de  Grasse's 
promised  stay  on  this  coast,  the  apparent  disinclination  of  their  naval 
officers  to  force  the  harbor  of  New  York,  and  the  feeble  compliance 
of  the  States  with  my  requisitions  for  men  hitherto,  and  the  little  pros 
pect  of  greater  exertion  in  future  —  to  give  up  all  ideas  of  attacking 


84  THE  YORKTOWN  CAMPAIGN. 

New  York,  and  instead  thereof  to  remove  the  French  troops  and  a  de 
tachment  from  the  American  army  to  the  head  of  Elk,  to  be  transport 
ed  to  Virginia,  for  the  purpose  of  co-operating  with  the  force  from  the 
West  Indies  against  the  troops  in  that  State." 

So,  finally,  the  army  on  the  Hudson  was  to  play  its  part  directly  in 
the  Yorktown  Campaign. 

From  the  tone  of  the  statement  in  his  "  Journal,"  and  the  somewhat 
mandatory  character  of  the  intelligence  from  Do  Grasse,  it  might  be 
inferred  that  Washington  had  been  forced,  against  his  inclination,  to 
make  a  radical  change  in  his  plans,  and  undertake  a  movement  for 
which  he  was  unprepared.  The  glory  of  his  having  conceived  or  been 
a  principal  organizer  of  the  combination  in  the  Chesapeake  would  be 
in  a  measure  dimmed  by  such  a  reflection.  But  we  reach  here  an  in 
teresting  point.  Had  Washington,  in  fact,  been  surprised  into  this  new 
movement?  If  so,  who  planned  it?  Who  must  have  the  credit  of  ar 
ranging  the  Yorktown  net  for  the  capture  of  Cornwallis?  Or  was  it 
all  a  piece  of  blind  fortune  ? 

Whoever  may  have  contributed  in  effecting  the  combination,  it  will 
be  seen  that  the  commander -in -chief  had  long  regarded  it  as  among 
the  possibilities,  "and  that  he  was  entirely  ready  for  it.  His  perfect 
understanding  of  the  situation  at  the  moment  it  was  time  to  act,  and 
his  prompt  decision  to  act  as  he  did,  prove  the  high  order  of  his  mili 
tary  talents.  It  was  by  the  exercise  of  the  same  qualities  that  he  exe 
cuted  his  memorable  retreat  from  Long  Island  in  1776,  and,  again,  turn 
ed  upon  Trenton  four  months  later.  The  present  campaign,  like  all 
before  it,  was  pre-eminently  shaped  by  circumstances.  If  the  command 
er- in -chief  was  only  in  part  instrumental  himself  in  shaping  them,  he 
watched,  and  at  the  right  instant  turned  them  to  account.  It  is  worth 
while  to  notice  how  he  canvassed  every  contingency  from  the  begin 
ning,  and  how  the  development  of  the  campaign  had  been  a  study 
which  prepared  him  to  take  the  closing  decisive  step. 

The  success  of  whatever  movement  might  be  undertaken  hinged 
upon  the  co-operation  of  De  Grasse.  As  the  land  and  naval  command 
ers  were  not  subject  to  one  controlling  mind,  it  became  of  the  first 
importance  for  them  to  be  in  perfect  harmony  as  to  the  plan  of  oper 
ations.  In  the  present,  case,  as  long  as  Washington  and  Ilochambeau 
were  agreed,  there  could  be  no  question  of  De  Grasse's  cordial  co-oper 
ation.  But  the  difficulty  lay  here,  that  the  field  of  operations  could 
not  be  fixed  upon  any  length  of  time  in  advance  —  clearly  not  two 
months  or  even  one  in  advance.  What  might  the  enemy  not  do  within 


WASHINGTON  IN  THE  CAMPAIGN.  85 

that  period?  Was  there  any  certainty  that  Cornwallis  would  be  in 
Virginia  in  August,  when  De  Grasse  proposed  to  be  there?  That 
Washington  was  anxious  to  prosecute  the  siege  of  New  York  as  late 
as  the  1st  of  August,  and  expected  Do  Grasse  to  assist,  is  not  to 
be  doubted.  It  was  the  plan  he  then  regarded  as  the  most  feasible. 
But  he  had  considered  all  contingencies.  He  had  already  thought  of 
a  possible  move  to  Virginia,  and  so  advised  Lafayette,  that  he  might 
hold  himself  in  readiness  for  it.  For  instance,  he  wrote  to  him  as  fol 
lows  on  the  30th  of  July :  "  I  am  convinced  that  your  desire  to  be 
with  this  army  arises  principally  from  a  wish  to  be  actively  useful. 
You  will  not,  therefore,  regret  your  stay  in  Virginia  until  matters  are 
reduced'  to  a  greater  degree  of  certainty  than  they  are  at  present,  es 
pecially  when  I  tell  you  that,  from  the  change  of  circumstances  with 
which  the  removal  of  part  of  the  enemy's  force  from  Virginia  to  New 
York  will  be  attended,  it  is  more  than  probable  that  we  shall  also  en 
tirely  change  our  plan  of  operations.  I  think  we  have  already  effected 
one  part  of  the  plan  of  the  campaign  settled  at  Weathersfield — that  is, 
giving  a  substantial  relief  to  the  Southern  States,  by  obliging  the  ene 
my  to  recall  a  considerable  part  of  their  force  from  thence.  Our  views 
must  now  be  turned  toward  endeavoring  to  expel  them  totally  from 
those  States,  if  we  find  ourselves  incompetent  to  the  siege  of  New 
York;"  and  he  hinted  at  the  expected  arrival  of  De  Grasse.  By  the 
15th  of  August  Washington  had  also  sounded  Robert  Morris,  at  Phila 
delphia,  as  to  the  means  of  transportation  from  that  point  to  Wilming 
ton  and  beyond.  From  these  and  other  expressions  on  the  part  of 
the  chief,  we  may  infer — as,  indeed,  one  of  his  letters  authorizes  the  in 
ference — that  even  had  De  Grasse  come  to  New  York,  Washington  was 
ready  to  suggest  his  sailing  back  to  the  Chesapeake,  while  the  army 
would  move  to  the  same  point,  if  at  that  moment  the  situation  in  Vir 
ginia  offered  the  most  tempting  prospects  of  success.  In  other  words, 
the  march  upon  Cornwallis  was  an  alternative  plan  already  maturing 
in  Washington's  mind,  before  word  came  from  De  Grasse  that  for  good 
reasons  he  should  sail  immediately  for  the  Chesapeake.  When  that  word 
came  Washington  recognized  that  the  situation  was  ripe  for  a  change  of 
plan,  and  at  once  decided  to  make  it.1 

1  In  regard  to  the  plans  of  this  campaign  the  simple  fact  is,  that  nothing  could  be 
settled  until  the  French  fleet  was  actually  on  the  coast.  Good  generalship  would  then 
consist  in  being  ready  to  make  the  right  move  the  moment  it  came.  This  is  all  that 
could  be  claimed  for  any  one,  and  it  can  all  be  claimed  for  Washington.  President 
Sparks  notices  that  Rochambeaii,  in  his  ''Memoirs,''  takes  the  credit  of  bringing  about 


86  THE   YORKTOWN   CAMPAIGN. 

Follow,  then,  the  fortunes  of  the  army  on  the  Hudson,  as  it  sudden 
ly  moved,  in  part,  to  the  southward,  whither  the  Commander-in-chief  had 
finally  resolved  to  lead  it. 

the  combination  at  Yorktown  himself.  But  on  close  examination  it  will  be  found  that 
Washington's  and  Rochambeau's  views  were  nearly  identical  from  first  to  last.  The 
latter  general  states  that  it  was  he  who  recommended  De  Grasse  to  sail  to  the  Chesa 
peake  and  make  Virginia  the  theatre  of  operations.  Washington  would  have  recom 
mended  the  same,  if  he  could  have  foretold  what  the  position  of  the  enemy  would  be 
there  when  De  Grasse  arrived.  Suppose  that  Clinton  had  recalled  the  greater  part  of 
the  force  under  Cornwallis,  and  the  latter  had  returned  to  Charleston,  as  he  proposed — 
De  Grasse  would  have  found  but  a  mere  handful  of  the  enemy  to  blockade  in  the  Ches 
apeake,  and  Washington  would  not  have  gone  there.  In  that  case  Rochambeau's  rec 
ommendations  would  have  miscarried.  The  case  seems  to  be  properly  stated  by  DC 
Grasse  in  his  letter  to  Rochambeau  (Sparks'  "Washington,"  vol.  viii.,  appendix),  where 
he  explains  that  he  had  to  decide  for  himself  what  point  to  sail  to,  and  that  the  tenor 
of  his  letters  from  Rochambeau,  Luzerne,  and  Washington  inclined  him  to  head  for  Vir 
ginia.  They  must  necessarily  have  left  him  a  largo  margin  of  discretion,  as  two  months 
were  to  elapse  between  the  date  they  wrote  and  the  time  he  was  to  arrive.  Nor  could 
De  Grasse  have  known  positively  himself  where  to  co-operate  until  he  was  on  the  coast. 
By  good  fortune  Cornwallis  remained  in  the  Chesapeake,  and  was  just  in  the  right  posi 
tion  to  be  cornered  when  the  French  admiral  made  his  appearance.  Then  the  net  was 
rapidly  drawn  around  him  by  the  fleet  at  sea,  and  Washington  and  Lafayette  on  land. 


THE  MARCH  UPON  CORNWALLIS.  87 


CHAPTER   V. 

THE   MARCH   UPON    CORNWALLIS.— MOVEMENTS   OF   THE   FRENCH   AND 

ENGLISH   FLEETS. 

r!MIE  march  now  to  be  undertaken  from  the  Hudson  to  the  York  ranks 
•-•-  among  the  famous  episodes  of  the  Revolution.  No  movement  on  so 
grand  a  scale  had  as  yet  been  attempted.  Brilliant  in  results,  it  was 
equally  bold  and  scientific  as  a  military  venture.  To  break  up  a  base  of 
operations,  leave  the  vicinity  of  a  powerful  enemy,  and  enter  a  new  field, 
more  than  four  hundred  miles  distant,  in  order  to  engage  in  a  single  en 
terprise,  is  no  ordinary  effort.  For  the  men  of  that  time  it  was  a  great 
effort.  With  the  limited,  or  at  best  uncertain,  resources  then  at  command, 
it  is  not  to  be  wondered  that  Washington  at  first  hesitated.  Sir  Henry 
Clinton,  on  the  opposite  side,  seems  to  have  entertained  no  suspicion  of 
such  a  movement.  Failure  might  have  come — and  there  were  those  who 
looked  for  it,  Hamilton  among  them — but,  even  with  this  result,  adverse 
criticism  must  have  been  silenced  before  Washington's  clear  presentation 
of  the  political  and  military  reasons  in  its  favor.  Convinced,  after  full 
reflection  upon  the  demands  of  the  country  and  his  relations  to  the  allies, 
and  after  canvassing  every  conceivable  contingency,  that  it  was  his  only 
as  well  as  a  promising  alternative,  he  adopted  the  plan,  and  immediately 
proceeded  to  its  execution.  The  energy  of  his  measures  seemed  to  be 
prophetic  of  success.  The  issue  depended  upon  the  exact  coincidence  of 
several  movements,  both  by  land  and  sea;  and  failure  of  co-operation  on 
his  part  was  not  to  be  permitted.  He  pushed  to  the  Chesapeake  to  be 
gloriously  rewarded.  That  march  was  the  centre-piece  of  the  combina 
tion — the  surprise  of  a  campaign  which  abounded  in  surprises. 

The  force  destined  to  the  southward  consisted  of  the  French  wing, 
four  thousand  strong,  and  two  thousand  men  from  the  American  army, 
including  Scammell's  Light  Infantry,  Lamb's  Regiment  of  Artillery,  the 
New  York  regiments,  the  two  New  Jersey,  the  Rhode  Island,  and  Ilazen's 
old  Canadian  regiment,  and  the  small  corps  of  Engineers,  and  Sappers 
and  Miners.  The  remainder  of  the  army — namely,  ten  Massachusetts 


THE   YORKTOWN   CAMPAIGN. 

regiments,  five  Connecticut,  two  New  Hampshire,  Crane's  Third  Artillery, 
Sheldon's  Dragoons,  and  militia  parties — a  total  of  less  than  four  thou 
sand — were  left,  under  General  Heath,  to  guard  West  Point  and  the  High 
lands.  General  Lord  Stirling  took  post  at  Saratoga  above,  and  Lieuten 
ant-colonel  Willett  upon  the  Mohawk,  with  New  York  Continentals  and 
Eastern  militia,  to  protect  the  Northern  frontier  against  threatened  in 
cursions  from  Canada. 

On  the  19th  of  August  the  movement  began.  At  first  it  was  con 
ducted  under  the  guise  of  an  attempt  upon  New  York  from  the  Jersey 
side.  Above  all  was  it  necessary  to  conceal  the  real  destination  as  long  as 
possible  from  the  enemy.  The  direction  of  the  march  favoring  a  feint 
toward  Staten  Island,  the  opportunity  was  fully  improved.  Clinton  un 
derstood  that  the  possession  of  that  island  by  Washington  would  materi 
ally  facilitate  the  latter's  co-operation  with  the  expected  French  fleet. 
The  appearance  of  American  troops  in  the  vicinity  of  Springfield  or 
Brunswick,  New  Jersey — an  easy  march  from  the  lower  end  of  the  island 
— would  thus  be  readily  explained.  To  strengthen  the  impression  of  op 
erations  in  that  quarter,  French  ovens  and  storehouses  were  established 
at  Chatham)  near  Springfield,  where  the  Jersey  line  was  encamped,  and 
whither,  on  the  18th,  Washington  sent  Ilazen's  regiment.1  This  indi 
cated  activity  where  Clinton  would  not  be  surprised  to  see  it. 

Breaking  camp  at  Dobb's  Ferry  early  on  the  morning  of  the  date 
named — the  19th — the  allied  army  faced  about  to  cross  the  Hudson  at 
King's  Ferry  above.  Washington,  with  the  Continentals,  took  the  river 
route,  \vhile  the  French  moved  farther  to  the  right  by  way  of  Northcastle, 
Pine's  Bridge,  and  Crompond.  At  King's  Ferry,  where  Quartermaster- 
general  Pickering  repaired  to  have  everything  in  readiness,  the  American 
detachment,  with  its  baggage  and  artillery,  crossed  first  and  rapidly  on 
the  20th  and  21st,2  and  encamped  beyond — the  Light  Infantry  at  Kakeat. 
Muddy  roads,  poor  horses,  heavy  guns,  and  much  camp  equipage  delayed 
the  French,  and  they  were  not  all  over  until  the  26th.  Washington,  who 
made  his  head-quarters  at  the  Smith  house,  at  Haverstraw,  the  scene  of 

1  "  Hazcn's  regiment,  being  thrown  over  at  Dobb's  Ferry,  was  ordered  with  the  Jer 
sey  Troops  to  march  and  take  Post  on  the  heights  between  Springfield  and  Chatham, 
and  cover  a  French  Bakery  at  the  latter  place,  to  veil  onr  real  movement  and  create 
apprehensions  for  Staten  Island." — Washington's  Journal,  August  18. 

2  "Monday  20th.  .  .  .  This  morning  the  detachments  from  the   American    army 
reached  King's  Ferry  and  began  to  cross ;  and  such  despatcli  was  used  that  day,  the 
following  night,  and  Tuesday  morning,  that  the  baggage,  park,  and  American  troops 
had  crossed  by  noon  of  the  21st." — Colonel  Pickering's  Journal. 


THE  MARCH  UPON  CORNWALLIS. 


89 


the  complot  of  Arnold  and  Andre,  superintended,  in  part,  the  crossing  of 
the  two  armies.  Claude  Blanchard,  commissary  of  the  French  corps,  re 
membered  his  presence  with  them.  "This  crossing,"  he  writes  in  his 
entertaining  journal,  "  occupied 
much  time,  owing  to  the  breadth 
of  the  river,  which  they  were 
obliged  to  cross  in  ferry-boats, 
collected  in  great  numbers,  but 
still  not  enough.  On  the  25th 
I  went  myself  to  the  spot,  and 
saw  many  of  the  troops  and 
much  baggage  cross.  General 
Washington  was  there;  they  had 
provided  a  pavilion  for  him,  from 
which  he  examined  everything 
very  attentively.  He  seemed,  in 
this  crossing,  in  the  march  of  our 
troops  toward  the  Chesapeake 
Buy,  and  in  our  reunion  with  M. 
de  Grasse,  to  see  a  better  destiny 
arise,  when,  at  this  period  of  the 
war,  exhausted,  destitute  of  re 
sources,  lie  needed  a  great  suc 
cess,  which  might  revive  courage 
and  hope.  He  pressed  my  hand 
with  much  affection  when  he  left 
us  and  crossed  the  river  himself." 
From  the  ferry  the  march 
was  resumed  without  delay,  and 
as  far  as  Princeton  three  differ 
ent  routes  were  followed.  The 
American  wing,  starting  off  early 
on  the  25th,  separated  into  two 
columns.  The  Light  Infantry 
and  the  First  New  York,  under 
the  command  of  General  Lincoln,  keeping  to  the  left,  marched  from 
Kakeat  by  way  of  Pa  ram  us  and  Second  River,  and  encamped  on  the 
27th  at  Springfield.  The  other  column,  including  the  remaining  troops, 
with  the  artillery,  baggage,  and  stores,  marched  by  Pompton  to  Chat 
ham  ;  while  the  French,  keeping  to  the  right,  passed  through  Suffrens 


ROUTK  OF  WASHINGTON'S  ARMY  FROM  THE  HUDSON 
TO  YORKTOWN. 


90  THE   YORKTOWN   CAMPAIGN. 

and  Pompton  to  Whippany.  By  these  movements  the  entire  force 
was  encamped  on  the  2Sth  in  the  vicinity  of  Chatham,  within  stri kino- 
distance  of  the  enemy.1  Here,  also,  there  was  one  day's  halt;  and,  as 
Hazen's  regiment  and  the  Jersey  line  were  already  on  the  spot,  the  con 
centration  seemed  to  point  to  the  possible  attempt  upon  Staten  Island, 
or  a  march  beyond  to  Sandy  Hook,  for  the  purpose,  as  Washington 
writes,  of  facilitating  "the  entrance  of  the  French  fleet  within  the  Bay." 
On  the  29th  the  troops  were  again  in  motion.  One  day's  inarch  more 
could  be  continued  in  the  same  general  direction  without  exciting  the 
enemy's  suspicion,  and  on  this  date  the  left  column,  reorganized,  pro 
ceeded  to  Brunswick,  the  centre  to  Boundbrook,  and  the  French  through 
Hometown  to  Bullion's  Tavern.  Then,  on  the  following  day,  the  col 
umns,  no  longer  inclining  toward  the  enemy,  headed  directly  away  to 
Princeton  and  Trenton,  and  the  march  to  the  Chesapeake  became  an 
open  movement.2 


1  Washington  gave  directions  daily  for  the  march  of  each  column.     The  following, 
for  the  29th,  is  one  of  General  Lincoln's  orders : 

"  SIR, — The  general  will  beat  at  3  o'clock  to-morrow  morning — the  assembly  at  hall- 
past  three,  and  the  march  at  4  o'clock.  General  Hazin's  regiment  in  front  and  the  Sap 
pers  and  Miners  will  cover  your  rear.  You  will  march  through  the  Scotch  plains,  Quib 
ble  Town,  and  Bound  Brook.  On  the  30th  to  Princeton — 31st  to  Trenton,  where  you 
will  meet  me  and  further  orders.  You  will  keep  these  orders  a  perfect  secret. 

"I  am  your  very  humble  servant, 

"August  2Sth,  1781.  «  B.  LINCOLN. 

"COI.ONKJ.  LAMB." 

[Lamb  MS.,  N.  Y.  Hist.  Soc.] 

2  "As  our  intentions  could  be  concealed  one  march  more  (under  the  idea  of  march 
ing  to  Sandy  Hook  to  facilitate  the  entrance  of  the  French  fleet  within  the  Bay),  the 
whole  army  was  put  in  motion  in  three  columns;  the  left  consisted  of  the  light  infan 
try,  first  York  Regiment,  and  the  Regiment  of  Rhode  Island;  the  middle  column  con 
sisted  of  the  park,  stores,  and  baggage,  Lamb's  Regiment  of  Artillery,  Hazen's,  and  the 
Corps  of  Sappers  and  Miners ;  the  right  column  consisted  of  the  whole  French  army, 
baggage,  stores,  etc.     This  last  was  to  march  by  the  route  of  Morristown,  Bullion's  Tav 
ern,  Somerset  Court  House,  and  Princetown.    The  middle  was  to  go  by  Boundbrook  to 
Somerset,  etc.,  and  the  left  to  proceed  by  the  way  of  Brunswick  to  Trenton,  to  which 
place  the  whole  were  to  march,  transports  being  ordered  to  meet  them  there." — Wasli- 
ingtori's  Journal. 

The  above  is  entered  in  the  "  Journal "  under  date  of  August  30th  by  mistake  for 
the  29th.  The  Jersey  line,  omitted,  marched  with  the  left  column,  and  the  Second  New 
York  followed  in  the  rear  of  the  French,  with  thirty  boats  or  "batteaux"  on  wheels, 
which  had  been  built  for  the  attack  on  New  York,  but  which  Washington  took  along 
for  use  in  Virginia.  Pickering  states  that  he  saw  them  safe  as  far  as  Suffrens  on  the 
27th.  The  French  army  marched  in  two  divisions — one  following  the  other  with  a 
day's  interval. 


THE  MARCH  UPON  COEXWALLIS.  91 

The  feint,  thus  admirably  preserved,  had  served  its  purpose.  The 
true  destination  being  kept  a  profound  secret  at  head-quarters,  no  desert 
ers  could  take  the  news  to  Clinton.  Officers  of  rank  in  the  allied  army 
had  not  fathomed  the  movement,  and  were  as  ignorant  of  its  object  as  the 
soldiers.  Count  Fersen,  aide  to  Rochambeau,  admits  that  he  was  not  in 
the  secret.  Colonel  Deuxponts  was  not  favored  with  it  until  the  28th ; 
and  another  French  officer  of  the  staff  could  only  conjecture,  on  the  29th, 
that  Virginia  was  the  objective  point.  Surgeon  Thacher,  of  Scarnmell's 
corps,  states  that  curiosity  in  the  matter  remained  at  a  high  pitch  in  the 
American  camp  until  Princeton  was  reached.  And,  as  to  the  enemy,  we 
have  Sir  Henry  Clinton's  own  admission  of  his  uncertainty  and  his  un 
readiness  also  to  meet  such  a  movement  in  time.  "  If  I  had  as  many  rea 
sons,"  he  writes  in  his  narrative  of  this  campaign,  "to  believe  that  Mr. 
Washington  would  move  his  army  into  Virginia  without  a  covering  fleet 
as  I  had  to  think  he  would  not,  I  could  not  have  prevented  his  passing 
the  Hudson  under  cover  of  his  forts  at  Verplank's  and  Stoney  Points. 
Nor  (supposing  I  had  boats  properly  manned)  would  it  have  been  advisa 
ble  to  have  landed  at  Elizabethtown,  in  the  face  of  works  which  he  might 
easily  have  occupied,  as  they  were  only  seven  miles  from  his  camp  at 
Chatham,  without  subjecting  my  army  to  be  beat  en  detail.  Nor  could  I, 
when  informed  of  his  march  toward  the  Delaware,  have  passed  an  army 
in  time  to  have  made  any  impression  upon  him  before  he  crossed  that 
river." 

Assured  of  their  destination  in  facing  southward,  the  troops  marched 
on  rapidly.  The  Americans,  in  the  van,  were  at  Princeton  on  the  30th, 
and  at  Trenton  on  the  31st.  It  was  hoped  that  at  the  Delaware  there 
would  be  boats  and  vessels  enough  to  take  them  all  down  to  Wilmington 
or  Christiana  Bridge ;  but,  in  spite  of  urgent  letters  from  Washington  and 
the  efforts  of  Robert  Morris  and  Quartermaster  Miles,  of  Philadelphia, 
the  number  was  insufficient  to  transport  the  whole,  and  the  inarch  by 
land  was  continued.  The  Second  New  York  Regiment,  with  the  bat- 
tea  ux  and  intrenching  tools,  the  artillery,  and  Ilazen's,  alone  went  by 
water.  Crossing  the  Delaware  on  the  1st  of  September,  the  Americans 
marched  seventeen  miles,  to  Lower  Dublin  ;  and  on  the  2d,  after  a  twelve- 
miles  march,  reached  and  passed  through  Philadelphia,  going  into  camp 
near  the  Schuylkill.  The  French  followed  on  the  3d,  keeping,  from 
Princeton,  a  day  behind. 

Washington  and  Rochambeau,  leaving  Lincoln  and  Viomenil  in  charge 
of  the  respective  wings  of  the  army,  hastened  to  Philadelphia  in  advance 
of  the  troops,  reaching  the  city  on  the  30th.  Quartermaster  Pickering 


92  THE  YORKTOWN  CAMPAIGN. 

reached  it  on  the  same  day,  after  a  hard  ride  of  sixty  miles  from  Bruns 
wick  landing.  The  commander- in -chief,  of  course,  was  received  with 
every  honor  and  attention.  A  troop  of  light  horse,  meeting  him  in  the 
suburbs,  escorted  him  into  town,  where  he  arrived  at  one  o'clock.  Robert 
Morris,  the  Superintendent  of  Finance,  was  among  the  first  to  welcome 
him.  At  the  City  Tavern,  where  the  party  alighted,  he  was  received  by 
"  the  universal  acclamations  of  the  citizens,"  while  many  gentlemen  called 
to  pay  their  respects.  The  general  then  adjourned,  says  Morris,  in  his 
diary,1  "to  my  house,  with  his  suite,  Count  de  Roehambeau,  the  Cheva 
lier  Chastelltix,  General  Knox,  General  Moultrie,  and  others,  to  dinner." 
There  they  drank  toasts  to  the  United  States,  to  the  Kings  of  France  and 
Spain,  to  the  United  Provinces,  to  the  Allied  Armies,  and  to  the  speed}' 
arrival  of  Count  de  Grasse,  while  several  ships  in  the  river  thundered 
salutes  in  response.  In  the  evening  there  \vas  a  general  illumination  in 
honor  of  his  Excellency,  who  walked  through  some  of  the  principal  streets, 
with  devoted  throngs  pressing  around  him.  The  city  was  al]  astir  on  the 
occasion  ;  and,  after  these  ovations  to  the  chiefs,  it  was  equally  hearty  in 
its  welcome  of  the  troops,  who  came  marching  through  a  day  or  two  later. 
The  American  detachment  appeared  on  the  afternoon  of  September  2d, 
but  made  no  halt.  Warm  and  dry  weather  it  had  been,  and  they  raised 
a  dust  "like  a  smothering  snow-storm,"  which  was  not  a  little  mortifying, 
says  Thacher,  "as  the  ladies  were  viewing  us  from  the  open  windows  of 
every  house  as  we  passed  through  this  splendid  city."  The  line  of  inarch, 
he  continues,  including  appendages  and  attendants,  extended  nearly  two 
miles.  "The  general  officers  and  their  aids,  in  rich  military  uniform, 
mounted  on  noble  steeds  elegantly  caparisoned,  were  followed  by  their 
servants  and  baggage.  In  the  rear  of  every  brigade  were  several  field- 
pieces,  accompanied  by  ammunition  carriages.  The  soldiers  marched  in 
slow  and  solemn  step,  regulated  by  the  drum  and  fife;"  and  in  the  rear 
followed  a  great  number  of  wagons,  loaded  with  tents,  provisions,  and 
baggage.  Gay  and  prosperous  seemed  the  city  to  the  bronzed  Continen 
tals,  the  heroes  of  hard  service  and  privation ;  and  if  they  grumbled 
somewhat  in  the  ears  of  Congress  about  their  long -deferred  pay,  it 
would  have  ill  become  that  body  or  the  civilian  to  blame  them.  Wash 
ington  understood  their  discontent,  and  saw  to  it  that  they  were  speedily 
satisfied. 

Much  more  of  a  sensation  was  the  entrance  of  the  French  army  on 
the  following  days.     Philadelphia  was  the  American  capital.     The  same 

1  Extract  from  Robert  Morris's  diary,  in  "  Diplomatic  Cor.,"  vol.  xi.,  p.  402. 


THE  MARCH  UPON  COKNWALL1S.  03 

honors  were  due  to  Congress  that  the  King  would  receive  at  home.  Uni 
formed  in  white,  with  colored  trimmings,  and  dressed  "as  elegantly  as 
ever  the  soldiers  of  a  garrison  were  on  a  day  of  review,"  the  army  of  our 
"gracious  ally"  marched  into  the  city  with  Roeham bean, who  had  gone 
out  to  meet  them,  at  their  head.  The  first  division  entered  on  the  3d, 
the  second  on  the  4th.  They  passed  in  review  before  Congress,  the 
French  minister,  and  the  commanding  generals,  and  from  the  accounts  of 


ROBERT    MORRIS. 


the  day  we  learn  that,  as  a  special  observance  of  etiquette,  the  President 
and  delegates  took  off  their  hats  at  the  salutes  of  the  officers  and  stand 
ards,  while  Washington  and  Rochambeau  stood  uncovered.  The  crowd 
ed  streets,  the  windows  filled  with  spectators,  the  music  of  the  bands,  the 
brilliant  array  of  troops,  and  the  enthusiasm  over  the  expected  successes 
in  the  field,  made  these  days  historical  for  the  city.  French  journals  and 
letters  enlarge  upon  the  scene  and  the  impression  produced  upon  the 
American  imagination  by  so  much  display  and  grandeur.  Then,  on  the 
5th,  the  regiment,  of  Soissonnais  gave  an  exhibition  of  the  French  drill 
in  the  presence  of  several  thousand  people,  and  Philadelphia  settled 


0-i  THE   YOEKTOWX   CAMPAIGN. 

down  to  await  the  more  solid  enjoyment  that  the  coining  victory  was  to 
bring.1 

On  move  the  troops,  meanwhile,  the  Continentals  halting  but  part  of 
one  day.  The  3d,  they  marched  ten  miles  from  the  Schuylkill  to  within 
three  miles  of  Chester.  On  the  4th  "  through  Chester,  through  Brandy- 
wine,  through  Wilmington,"  says  Lieutenant  Sanderson,  of  the  Light  In 
fantry,  encamping  one  mile  beyond — about  twenty  miles  that  day.  The 
next  day  twelve  miles,  through  Christiana,  where  the  park  of  artillery  and 
troops  from  Trenton  had  landed  the  day  before;  and  on  the  Gth  a  march 
of  ten  miles  brought  them  to  the  head  of  Elk,  a  short  distance  from  the 
Chesapeake.  It  had  been  fifteen  days  since  they  left  the  Hudson,  two 
hundred  miles  to  the  northward.  On  the  8th  they  were  joined  by  the 
French  troops.  In  spite  of  the  fatigues  of  the  march  they  were  all  in 
good  spirits,  with  hardly  a  sick  man  among  them,  and  seemed  to  realize 
the  probably  decisive  results  of  the  movement  they  were  engaged  in. 
"We  shall  soon  look  in  upon  Cornwallis  as  stern  as  the  grave,"  wrote  an 
officer  to  a  friend  in  the  North.  From  the  same  point  wrote  Pickering 
to  his  wife:  "Here  I  am,  my  dearest,  in  perfect  health.  Presently  I  set 
out  for  Williamsburg  by  land.  It  will  be  a  seven  or  eight  days'  journey, 
and  give  me  an  opportunity  of  seeing  Maryland  and  Virginia.  I  hope, 
in  a  little  time,  to  congratulate  you  on  the  capture  of  Cornwallis  and  his 
army.  Should  we  succeed  at  all,  the  work,  I  think,  will  be  short ;  and  the 
only  chance  of  ill-success  will  arise  from  this— that  Cornwallis  may  possi 
bly  attempt  to  save  himself  by  flight,  by  marching  his  army  up  the  coun 
try,  and  then  pushing  to  South  Carolina.  But  a  few  days'  delay  will 
render  this  impossible,  as  our  troops  will  soon  surround  them." 

At  Philadelphia,  Washington  confidently  hoped  to  have  the  news 
of  De  Grasse's  arrival  in  the  Chesapeake.  None  caine,  and  for  a  day 
or  two  the  uncertainty  clouded  the  prospect.  What  might  not  have 
stopped  or  delayed  the  fleet?  The  active  Rodney  and  Hood,  with  good 
English  ships,  were  in  the  West  Indies,  and  would  certainly  do  their 
best  to  harass  the  French.  Had  they  encountered  De  Grasse  and  kept 
him  back?  All  depended  on  that  fleet.  But,  happily,  the  suspense  was 
brief.  Washington  left  Philadelphia  for  the  Head  of  Elk  on  the  5th. 
At  Chester,  the  same  afternoon,  he  received  despatches  from  General 
Gist,  at  Baltimore,  with  the  welcome  news  that  De  Grasse  was  at  last 

1  For  particulars  respecting  the  march  of  the  French,  and  scenes  in  Philadelphia, 
see  Deuxponfs  "My  Campaigns,"  Thacher's  "Journal,"  and  article  and  references  in 
Mag.  of  Am.  History,  vol.  v.,  pp.  1-20. 


THE  MARCH  UPON  CORNWALLIS.  95 

iii  the  Chesapeake.  Overjoyed  at  the  intelligence,  he  sent  it  at  once 
to  Congress,  and  then  pushed  on  to  join  the  troops.  "  I  never  saw  a 
man  so  thoroughly  and  openly  delighted  than  General  Washington," 
says  the  Duke  de  Lauzun.  Reaching  the  Head  of  Elk  on  the  next 
morning,  he  issued  the  following  congratulatory  order  to  the  army: 

"Head  Quarters,  Head  of  Elk,  Sept.  G,  1781. 

"  It  is  with  the  highest  pleasure  and  satisfaction  that  the  Commander-in-chief  an 
nounces  to  the  Army  the  arrival  of  Count  De  Grass  in  the  Chesapeak,  with  a  very 
favourable  Naval  and  Land  force.  At  the  same  time  he  felicitates  the  army  on  the 
auspicious  occasion,  he  anticipates  the  glorious  events  which  may  be  expected  from 
the  combined  operations  now  in  contemplation.  As  no  circumstance  could  possibly 
happen  more  opportunely  in  point  of  time,  no  prospect  would  ever  have  promised 
more  opportunely  of  success.  Nothing  but  want  of  exertion  can  possibly  blast  the 
pleasing  prospect  before  us.  The  General  calls  upon  the  gentlemen  officers,  the  brave 
and  faithfull  soldiers  he  has  the  honour  to  command,  to  exert  their  utmost  abilities  in 
the  cause  of  their  country,  to  share  with  him,  with  their  usual  alacrity,  the  difficulties, 
dangers,  and  glory  of  the  enterprise."  ' 

To  this  was  added  the  gratifying  announcement  that  abstracts  for 
a  month's  pay  were  to  be  made  out  immediately  for  all  the  troops,  ex 
cepting  those  who  had  been  so  "lost  to  all  sense  of  honour,  the  pride 
of  their  profession  and  the  love  of  their  country,  as  to  desert  the 
Standard  of  Freedom  at  this  critical  period."  Promptly,  as  soon  as  the 
pay-rolls  were  ready,  Mr.  Philip  Audibert,  Deputy  Paymaster-general  at 
Philadelphia,  appeared  in  the  camps  with  hard  money,  which  Robert 
Morris  had  borrowed  from  the  Intendant  of  the  French  army,  with 
Rochambeau's  consent,  and  succeeded  in  adding  substantially  to  the 
good-humor  of  the  soldiers. 

Men,  indeed,  on  every  side  seemed  to  feel  that  great  events  were  at 
hand.  "  Before  this  reaches  you,"  wrote  Rush  to  Gates,  on  the  5th, 
"the  fate  of  Great  Britain  and  the  repose  of  Europe  will  probably  be 
determined  in  Chesapeake  Bay.  Heaven  prosper  our  allies !  I  long 
to  be  satiated  with  revenge  against  Scotch  Englishmen.  Ileyder  Ali 
is  the  standing  toast  of  my  table.  The  enemies  of  Great  Britain  any 
where  and  everywhere  should  be  the  friends  of  every  American.  Virtue, 
justice,  and  humanity  have  exhausted  their  tears  in  weeping  over  her  dep 
redations  upon  human  nature."  "Everything,"  said  Governor  Howley, 
of  Pennsylvania,  "conspires  to  complete  the  destruction  of  British  hopes 
in  our  Southern  world."  "General  Washington  and  the  army,"  wrote 
William  Clajon,  "are  gone  to  take  Lord  Cornwallis  in  his  mouse-trap."3 

1  Lieutenant  Sanderson's  MS.  Diary.  2  Extracts  from  the  Gates  MS. 


96  THE  YORKTOWN  CAMPAIGN. 

Leaving  the  allies,  now,  for  a  moment,  at  the  liead  of  the  Elk,  prepar 
ing  to  sail  down  the  Chesapeake,  what  was  the  situation  below?  How 
came  Cornwallis  to  remain  quietly  at  Yorktown  when  he  discovered  that 
he  must  soon  be  cooped  up  there?  How  had  the  French  suddenly  ac 
quired  a  naval  supremacy  on  this  coast?  What  was  Lafayette  doing  ? 

As  to  the  latter,  when  he  learned  that  Cornwallis  had  sailed  from 
Portsmouth  up  the  Bay,  instead  of  to  New  York,  he  broke  up  camp  at 
Malvern  Hill,  and  "cut  across,"  with  the  Light  Infantry,  toward  Freder- 
icksburg,  under  the  supposition  that  Baltimore  was  the  enemy's  destina 
tion.  Finding  that  they  brought  up  at  Yorktown,  he  took  position  on 
the  Pamunky,  near  West  Point.  As  he  supposed  that  field  movements 
were  to  begin  again,  he  called  loudly  for  cavalry.  "Push  on  every  dra 
goon,"  he  wrote  to  Steuben  on  the  3d ;  on  the  9th  again :  "  Tarleton  is 
arrived  at  York.  I  dread  the  consequences  of  such  a  superiority  of 
horse;"  on  the  13th,  from  Montock  Hill:  "Unless  I  immediately  receive 
two  hundred  dragoons  the  consequences  will  be  fatal,  not  only  to  this 
State  and  army,  but  to  the  whole  system  of  our  campaign."  Singularly 
enough,  he  could  get  very  few — one  hundred  in  all,  sixty  of  whom  repre 
sented  the  Fourth  Regiment,  which  came  from  Pennsylvania.  Virginia 
should  have  supplied  the  demand,  but  the  State  had  no  equipments. 
Fortunately,  Tarleton  and  Simcoe  kept  quiet  at  York  and  Gloucester. 

Presently  Washington  communicated  to  Lafayette  the  possible  land 
and  naval  combination  in  the  Chesapeake,  and  the  marquis  was  happier. 
On  the  25th  of  August  he  was  elated  with  word  from  his  chief  that  Do 
Grasse  was  certainly  coming  to  Virginia,  and  that  he  himself  was  about 
to  move  down  with  part  of  the  Northern  army  to  his  assistance.  The 
point  was  now  of  great  importance  to  keep  Cornwallis  ignorant  of  these 
movements  as  long  as  possible,  and  also  to  prevent  his  retreat,  should  he 
attempt  it,  into  North  Carolina.  Lafayette,  accordingly,  exerted  himself 
with  new  vigor  under  the  pleasing  prospect.  Wayne,  with  the  Pennsyl- 
vanians,  was  on  the  south  bank  of  the  James,  under  instructions  to  join 
General  Greene  in  South  Carolina.  They  were  stopped  at  once,  Lafayette 
explaining  the  reason  to  Wayne,  on  the  25th,  as  follows  :  "  I  am  happy  in 
this  safe  opportunity  to  open  my  heart  to  you  ;  there  is  an  important  secret 
which  I  communicate  to  you  alone,  and  which  I  request  you  to  keep  from 
everybody's  knowledge.  There  is  great  reason  to  hope  for  an  immediate 
aid  by  \vater.  In  the  last  letter  from  the  General  he  communicates  this 
intelligence,  which  I  am  bound  upon  honor  to  keep  secret.  He  directs  me 
to  keep  you  here  until  further  orders;  and,  above  all,  recommends  that 
every  measure  be  taken  to  prevent  the  enemy's  retreating  to  Carolina.  .  .  . 


THE  MARCH  UPON  CORNWALLIS.  97 

I  would  therefore  wish  you  to  take  an  healthy  position,  near  Westover; 
to  make  every  preparation  ;  to  collect  the  means  of  helping  to  keep  up 
the  idea  of  a  southern  destination  ;  and  to  improve  your  situation  upon 
James  River,  in  having  your  men  well  supplied."1  At  the  same  time 
Governor  Burke,  of  North  Carolina,  was  requested  to  destroy  the  fords 
and  hoats  on  the  rivers  that  the  enemy  would  have  to  cross,  and  post  his 
militia  at  the  passes  and  advantageous  points  to  delay  them. 

This,  then,  was  the  general  situation  at  the  close  of  August :  Corn- 
wallis  fortifying  leisurely  at  Yorktown ;  Lafayette  in  a  camp  of  observa 
tion  at  Holt's  Forge,  on  the  Pamunky,  near  the  White  House;  "Wayne 
on  the  James,  about  opposite  Harrison's  Landing;  Washington's  troops 
inarching  down  through  Trenton  ;  De  Grasse  entering  the  Chesa 
peake.  Corn  wall  is  did  not  yet  know  about  Washington  or  the  French 
admiral. 

The  next  point  is  the  naval  co-operation.  From  the  beginning  of  the 
war  Great  Britain  had  retained  the  complete  control  of  the  American 
waters.  By  unexpectedly  losing  it  at  this  crisis  she  lost  her  colonies. 
Fox  and  other  members  of  the  Opposition  in  Parliament  insisted  that 
the  failure  of  the  British  plans  in  1781  was  to  be  laid  at  the  door  of  the 
Navy  and  its  Secretary,  Lord  Sandwich.  It  was  a  vital  question  :  Why 
had  France  been  permitted  suddenly  to  acquire  such  decisive  naval 
superiority  on  the  American  coast  ?  Cornwallis,  otherwise,  would  have 
been  saved  from  ruin. 

Briefly  reviewing  the  facts  in  the  case,  and  it  appears  that  while  the 
British  navy,  which,  in  1781,  included  about  eighty  ships-of-the-line  in 
commission,  was  superior  to  that  of  France,  it  was  far  inferior  to  the 
combined  navies  of  France  and  Spain,  whose  courts  were  then  in  alliance. 
The  protection  of  many  points  necessitated  the  dispersion  of  her  fleets. 
One  covered  Gibraltar.  Admiral  Darby,  with  thirty  sail -of -the- line, 
watched  the  English  Channel.  Sir  George  Rodney,  seconded  by  Sir 
Samuel  Hood,  cruised  in  the  West  Indies;  while  Admiral  Arbnthnot, 
soon  succeeded  by  Graves,  guarded  New  York  with  eight  ships.  The 
French  fleet  in  American  waters,  before  the  campaign  opened,  was  also 
of  eight  ships,  and  lay  at  Newport,  Rhode  Island,  under  the  command  <>f 
the  newly-arrived  Admiral  de  Harms. 

France  had  Jong  nopea  16  1'UUlter  America  more  effective  assistance 
than  her  first  land  and  naval  contingent  of  1780,  under  Rochambeau, 
could  offer,  but  it  was  not  until  eight  months  later  that  her  promise  could 

1  Wayne  papers,  in  Casket,  August  25,  1781. 

7 


98  THE  YORKTOWN  CAMPAIGN. 

be  realized;  and  then  only  a  fleet  could  be  spared,  with  conditional  in 
structions  respecting  operations  on  the  Northern  coast.  This  was  placed 
under  the  command  of  Admiral  de  Grasse,  a  sailor  of  reputation;  and, 
on  the  22d  of  March,  it  started,  with  a  large  convoy,  from  Brest,  with  the 
primary  object  of  serving  French  and  Spanish  colonial  interests  in  the 
Wgst  Indies.  Toward  the  close  of  April  De  Grasse,  with  twenty-four 
ships,  appeared  off  Martinique,  in  the  Little  Antilles,  skirmished  with 
Hood,  and,  in  the  first  days  of  May,  took  Tobago  from  the  English.  Rod 
ney,  who  with  Hood  had  twenty-two  ships,  did  not  engage  seriously,  for 
fear  of  becoming  entangled  "among  the  Grenadillas"  and  decoyed  into 
the  rapid  currents  off  the  coast  of  Venezuela.  De  Grasse  then  sailed  to 
Cape  Francois — the  present  Cape  Haytien,  on  the  northern  coast  of  Hayti 
— where  he  found  the  frigate  Concorde  awaiting  him  with  the  despatches 
from  Washington  and  Rochambeau  urging  his  co-operation  with  them  at 
whatever  might  prove  the  most  favorable  point  on  the  coast.  Concluding, 
as  we  have  seen,  that  the  Chesapeake  was  that  point,  he  collected  as  many 
ships  as  possible,  borrowed  three  thousand  troops,  under  the  Marquis  St. 
Simon,  and  fifteen  hundred  thousand  livres  at  Havana,  as  the  allied  com 
manders  had  requested,  and,  heading  northward  on  the  13th  of  August, 
anchored  on  the  31st  in  Lynnhaven  Bay,  outside  of  Hampton  Roads. 
-He  had  brought  a  noble  fleet  of  twenty-eight  sail-of-the-line  and  six  frig 
ates — his  own  flag-ship  being  the  Ville  de  Paris,  carrying  one  hundred 
and  twenty  guns,  and  regarded  with  pride  in  the  French  navy  as  the 
grandest  hull  afloat  on  all  the  seas. 

Thus  the  several  lines  were  drawing  together  with  singular  good-fort 
une.  One  further  step,  however,  remained  to  be  taken,  and  that  cau 
tiously.  Should  Cornwallis  suddenly  realize  his  danger,  he  might  leave 
Yorktown,  move  up  the  peninsula,  cross  the  James  at  or  above  Rich 
mond,  and  put  himself  in  the  Carolinas  again.  Lafayette,  accordingly, 
concerted  with  the  Marquis  St.  Simon,  as  soon  as  the  fleet  arrived,  to  have 
the  troops,  brought  from  the  West  Indies,  land  at  Jamestown  Island  on 
the  5th  of  September,  while  he  should  move  his  own  troops  from  the 
Pamunky  to  the  same  vicinity  at  about  the  same  time,  and  Wayne  move 
his  to  the  island  down  the  south  bank  of  the  James.  This  simultaneous 
junction  was  effected  without  interruption,  and  on  the  evening  of  the  7th 
the  entire  force,  with  Lafayette  in  command,  took  up  a  strong  position 
across  the  peninsula  at  Williamsburg,  a  dozen  miles  north  of  Yorktown. 
Cornwallis  subsequently  reconnoitred  Lafayette's  camp,  with  a  view  of 
breaking  through,  but  he  seems  to  have  counted  the  hazard  great,  and 
preferred  to  await  the  movements  of  the  British  admirals,  who,  he  sup- 


THE  MARCH   UPON  CORNWALLIS.  99 

posed  and  was  encouraged  to  believe,  would  sooner  or  later  be  able  to 
raise  De  Grasse's  blockade  and  bring  him  relief. 

Finally,  in  this  connection,  what  were  Rodney,  and  Hood,  and  Graves 
about,  that  they  permitted  De  Grasse  to  preoccupy  the  Chesapeake  and 
hold  his  own  there  until  Cornwallis  fell?  Fatality  attended  them  at  every 
step.  It  was  Rodney's  duty  to  see  that  the  French  fleet  was  neutralized 
in  these  waters,  and  as  early  as  May  3d  he  warned  Arbutlmot,  at  New 
York,  of  its  arrival — "that  you  may  be  upon  your  guard,"  are  his  words, 
"should  they  visit  the  coasts  of  America,  in  which  case  I  shall  send  every 
assistance  in  my  power."  Graves  had  succeeded  Arbutlmot,  but  soon 
after  receiving  this  intelligence  he  sailed  off  on  a  cruise  to  the  eastward. 
"When  Rodney  heard  that  De  Grasse  had  repaired  to  Cape  Frangois,  he 
promptly  sent  a  second  despatch  to  Graves,  recommending  him  to  unite 
his  squadron  with  that  which  he  should  send  or  lead  himself  to  Virginia, 
and  requesting  him  to  have  frigates  looking  out  for  him  with  the  latest 
information  as  to  affairs  in  America.  This  despatch  never  reached 
Graves.  The  captain  of  the  sloop-of-war  which  carried  it  arrived  safely 
at  New  York,  but  not  finding  the  admiral,  sailed  in  search  of  him  to  the 
eastward.  On  the  way  he  fell  in  with  three  American  privateers,  which 
compelled  him  to  run  his  vessel  ashore  on  Long  Island.  The  despatches 
he  sunk  !  not  suspecting  their  importance.1  Meanwhile  Rodney,  pleading 
ill-health,  decided  to  return  to  England,  and  sent  Hood  northward  to  join 
Graves  and  head  off  De  Grasse.  Sailing  up  the  coast,  Hood  looked  into 
the  Chesapeake  on  August  25th,  but  found  no  French  there;  nor  was 
there  any  frigate  or  any  word  from  Graves.  Continuing  his  course,  there 
fore,  with  the  fourteen  sail-of-the-line,  six  frigates,  and  one  fire-ship,  which 
he  brought  from  the  West  Indies,  he  reached  Sandy  Hook,  and  reported 
the  situation  to  Graves,  who  had  lately  returned  to  New  York ;  and  this 
was  the  first  that  Graves  knew  of  the  approach  of  De  Grasse  and  the 
threatened  danger  in  Virginia.  He  realized  the  necessity,  however,  of  im 
mediate  action,  and  joining  his  ships  to  Hood's,  assumed  the  command  and 
bore  down  to  the  Chesapeake.  As  it  had  just  been  ascertained  that  De 
Barras,  with  the  French  fleet  at  Newport,  had  sailed,  presumably,  for  the 
same  point,  haste  was  made  to  get  there  before  him,  and  at  least  prevent 
his  junction  with  De  Grasse. 

Graves  and  Hood  were  too  late,  for  De  Grasse  had  entered  the  Chesa 
peake.  He  was  but  five  days  behind  Hood  on  the  way  from  the  West 

1  These  facts  appear  in  "  Two  Letters  Respecting  the  Conduct  of  Rear-admiral 
Graves,"  etc.  Edited  by  Mr.  H.  B.  Dawson. 


100 


THE   YORKTOWN   CAMPAIGN. 


Indies.  But  the  English  admirals  determined  to  attempt  his  dislodgement 
by  fighting,  and  on  the  5th  of  September,  the  day  St.  Simon's  troops  were 
landing  at  Jamestown  Island,  the  two  fleets  hove  in  sight  of  each  other 
and  prepared  for  action.  De  Grasse  slipped  his  cables  and  stood  out  to 
sea  for  more  room.  His  line  of  battle  numbered  twenty-four  ships  of  the 


COUNT    DE    GRASSE. 


line,  carrying  seventeen  hundred  guns  and  nineteen  thousand  seamen.  Le 
Sieur  de  Bougainville  and  Le  Sieur  de  Monteil  commanded.  the  two  main 
Opposed  to  him,  Graves  presented  the  lighter  ar 


mament  of   nineteen    ships-of-the-line,  with    fourteen    hundred   guns  and 
thirteen   thousand  seamen.     The  three  divisions  of  his  fleet  were  com- 


THE  MARCH  UPON  CORNWALLIS.  101 

manded  by  Sir  Samuel  Hood,  Sir  Francis  Samuel  Drake,  and  himself. 
At  a  quarter-past  four  in  the  afternoon  the  action  began,  and  at  half-past 
six  it  was  over,  with  advantage  to  the  French,  but  not  decisive.  The  Eng 
lish  lost  ninety  men  killed  and  two  hundred  and  forty-six  wounded,  and 
had  sixteen  guns  dismounted.  On  the  part  of  the  French  the  loss  was 
something  more:  but  the  English  admiral  found  that  two  or  three  of  his 

Cj  '  O 

ships  were  badly  damaged,  and  after  manoeuvring  four  days  returned  to 
New  York,  leaving  De  Grasse  master  of  the  Chesapeake. 

"The  5th  of  September  was,  I  confess,  a  moment  of  ambition  for 
me,"  wrote  Graves  at  a  later  day  ;  and  well  it  might  have  been.  Could 
lie  have  gained  one  of  those  memorable  victories  over  De  Grasse  which 
so  often  grace  the  records  of  England's  navy,  the  York  town  Campaign 
would  have  had  a  different  termination.  The  secret  of  the  British  failure 
there  was  either  the  ministry's  neglect  in  immediately  securing  absokrte 
naval  supremacy  on  this  coast,  after  De  Grasse  sailed  from  France,  or  the. 
over-confidence  or  carelessness  of  the  admirals  in  command.  It  is  the 
British  naval  administration  that  is  to  bo  charged  with  the  York  town 
catastroplie. The  blunders  of  Clinton  and  Cornwallis  contributed  only 
in  a  minor  degree.1 

It  only  remained  now  for  Washington's  troops  to  reach  Lafayette's 
force  at  Williamsburg,  and  march  down  upon  Cornwallis.  From  the 
head  of  the  Elk  the  advance  of  each  army  embarked  in  light  transports. 
The  main  body  of  the  French  and  the  New  York  and  New  Jersey  troops 
kept  on  to  Baltimore  and  Annapolis,  and  embarked  in  frigates  sent  up 
by  De  Grasse.  By  the  18th  (September)  they  were  all  off,  heading  down 
the  Chesapeake  for  the  landings  nearest  Williamsburg  on  the  James. 
Scammell's  light  infantry  were  the  first  to  arrive,  and  they  disembarked 
at  the  College  Landing,  about  a  mile  from  Williamsburg,  on  College  or 
Archer's  Hope  creek.2  The  French  landed  in  the  vicinity,  at  Jamestown 

/'  '  Clinton  claims  that  the  home  authorities  assured  him  of  Rodney's  ability  to  take 
care  of  De  Grasse,  relieving  him  of  anxiety  on  that  point.  As  to  Hood  and  the  action 
of  September  5th,  Clinton  says  this:  "When  Mr.  Graves  sailed,  Sir  Samuel  Hood  was 
clear  of  opinion  La  Grasse  would  bring  no  more  than  16  of  the  line  at  most.  Ban-as 
tlio'  at  sea  was  far  to  the  Eastward;  there,  therefore,  was  every  probability  that  Mr. 
Graves  would  beat  them  en  detail,  and  even  should  they  join,  Sir  Samuel  Hood  said 
he  thought  they  were  a  match;1—  Clinton's  explanation  in  u  New  York  in  tlie  Revolu-  _ 
fe'o«,"  pp.  183-84. 

3  The  original  name  of  what  is  usually  called  College  Creek  is  "Archer's  Hope." 
Chaplain  Evans,  of  Scammell's  corps,  says,  September  20th  :  "  We  proceeded  up  James' 


102  THE  YORKTOWN  CAMPAIGN. 

Island,  and  at  Bui-well's  Ferry,  the  present  King's  Mills  "Wharf,  one  mile 
below  the  month  of  Archer's  Hope.  The  stores  and  artillery  were  un 
loaded  at  Trebell's,  or  the  present  Grove  Wharf,  three  miles  below  Bur- 
well's,  and  six  miles  from  Yorktown,  these  points  being  precisely  located 
on  the  accompanying  map,  made  by  Major  Kearney  in  1818.  On  the 
20th  all  the  troops — Washington's,  the  French,  and  Lafayette's — were 
concentrated  in  front  of  Williamsbnrg. 

As  to  the  Commander-in-chief — not  waiting  for  the  embarkation  of 

O 

the  troops  at  the  head  of  Elk,  he  pushed  on  to  Baltimore  with  Ilocham- 
beau,  and  then,  riding  sixty  miles  a  day,  reached  his  home  at  Mount 
Vernon,  which  he  had  not  visited  for  six  years.  Here  he  remained  three 
days,  the  9th  to  the  12th,  and  on  the  14th  arrived  at  Lafayette's  head 
quarters,  at  Williamsburg,  in  advance  of  his  army.  As  he  approached  the 
hitter's  camp  the  troops  turned  out  on  their  parades,  a  salute  of  twenty- 
one  guns  was  iired,  and  later  in  the  afternoon  the  Marquis  St.  Simon  gave 
a  sumptuous  entertainment,  at  which  the  chiefs  and  all  the  officers  were 
present.  "To  add  to  the  happiness  of  the  evening,"  says  Colonel  Butler, 
''an  elegant  band  of  music  played  an  introductive  part  of  a  French  opera, 
signifying  the  happiness  of  the  family  when  'blessed  with  the  presence  of 
their  father,  and  their  great  dependence  upon  him.  About  ten  o'clock 
the  company  rose  up,  and  after  mutual  congratulations  and  the  greatest 
expressions  of  joy,  they  separated." 

On  the  27th  Washington  issued  marching  orders  for  the  next  morn 
ing,  and  all  was  made  ready  for  the  final  grapple  with  the  enemy. 

The  situation  thus  presented  was  the  great  surprise  of  the  Revolution. 
It  appears  as  one  of  the  few  grand  relieving  features  in  an  otherwise 
comparatively  tedious  war,  for  here  we  have  a  piece  of  strategy  on  Wash 
ington's  part  which  involved  for  the  first  time  extensive  and  critical 
operations,  and  whose  details  were  carried  out  with  singular  precision  and 
success.  Clinton  is  quietly  left  in  the  lurch  at  New  York ;  Washington 
boldly  inarches  four  hundred  miles  away,  and  suddenly  falls  upon  his 
famous  lieutenant  at  a  point  where  assistance  cannot  reach  him. 

In  the  following  chapter  we  reach  the  glorious  termination  of  these 
rapidly  developing  movements. 

river  with  a  fair  wind  until  our  vessel  ran  on  ground,  where  we  continued  till  8  o'clock 
this  morning,  when  we  left  that  vessel,  and  went  on  board  of  a  smaller  one.  The  wind 
was  against  us  this  day,  and  very  violent ;  nevertheless,  by  tacking  frequently  and 
contending  with  the  wind,  we  arrived  at  this  place,  which  is  called  the  landing  of 
Archer's  Hope.  ..." 


THE   SIEGE   OF  YORKTOWN.  105 


CHAPTER  VI. 

THE   SIEGE   OF   YORKTOWN. 

EARLY  on  the  morning  of  the  28th  the  expectant  troops  moved  for 
ward  from  Williamsburg  to  the  scene  of  their  coming  triumph.  It 
proved  to  be  a  leisurely  march  of  eleven  miles  under  a  fair  sky.  Taking 
the  "great  road"  down  the  peninsula,  the  main  body  of  Continentals  and 
French,  the  former  in  advance,  passed  the  Half-way  House  in  single  col 
umn;  then,  following  separate  routes — the  Americans  tiling  to  the  right 
—halted  at  noon  within  two  miles  of  the  enemy's  position  in  front  of 
Yorktown.  The  militia,  marching  farther  to  the  right,  by  llarwood's 
Mills,  joined  the  Continentals  at  a  point  known  as  Munford's  Bridge. 
Muhlenberg's  Light  Infantry  Brigade,  preceded  by  Moylan's  dragoons 
and  Colonel  Lewis's  riflemen,  formed  the  van  of  the  Americans;  while 
the  volunteers  of  Baron  St.  Simon  and  chasseurs  and  grenadiers,  under 
the  Marquis  de  Laval,  led  the  French.  The  troops  all  moved  in  light 
marching  order,  ready  for  action  at  a  moment's  notice,  and  were  doubt 
less  eager  for  the  opportunity  to  fulfil  the  instructions  of  the  com- 
mander-in-chief  issued  the  day  before.  "If  the  enemy  should  be  tempt 
ed  to  meet  the  army  on  its  march,"  ran  the  order,  "the  General  par 
ticularly  enjoins  the  troops  to  place  their  principal  reliance  on  the 
bayonet,  that  they  may  prove  the  vanity  of  the  boast  which  the  British 
make  of  their  peculiar  prowess  in  deciding  battles  with  that  weapon. 
He  trusts  a  generous  emulation  will  actuate  the  allied  armies;  that  the 
French,  whose  national  weapon  is  that  of  close  fight,  and  the  troops  in 
general,  that  have  so  often  used  it  with  success,  will  distinguish  them 
selves  on  every  occasion  that  offers.  The  justice  of  the  cause  in  which 
we  are  engaged,  and  the  honor  of  the  two  Nations,  must  inspire  every 
breast  with  sentiments  that  are  the  presage  of  victory." 

To  this  approach  of  the  allies  no  resistance  was  offered.  For  Corn- 
wallis  it  would  have  been  a  waste  of  men;  and  as  the  combined  columns 
appeared  in  sight  his  pickets  fell  back.  Those  of  Abercrornbie's  light 
infantry,  which  covered  the  British  right,  were  the  first  to  give  the  alarm, 
liochambeau  sent  forward  Baron  Viomenil,  who,  with  De  Laval's  chasseurs 


106  THE   YORKTOWN   CAMPAIGN. 

and  two  field-pieces,  cleared  the  way  for  an  examination  of  the  ground 
in  that  quarter.  Tarleton's  Legion  covered  the  enemy's  left,  but  the  in 
tervention  of  a  marshy  rivulet  prevented  more  than  the  tiring  of  a  few 
cannon-shot  at  his  videttes,  and  at  sunset  his  command  withdrew  to  the 
Moore  House,  below  Yorktown.  Ko  casualties  occurred  in  this  advance; 
and  the  allied  army,  forming  in  line  of  battle  from  the  York  River,  above 
the  town,  through  the  \voods  arid  fields  to  the  Beaverdam,  or  Warwick 
Creek,  the  French -on  the  left,  the  Americans  on  the  right,  rested  within 
a  mile  of  the  British  posts.  Washington's  brief  order  in  the  evening  in 
dicated  the  proximity  of  the  combatants:  "The  whole  army,  officers  and 
soldiers,  will  lay  on  their  arms  this  night."1 

The  position  of  the  enemy,  now  to  be  invested  by  the  allies,  was  not 
especially  favorable  for  defence.  In  taking  post  at  Yorktown  Cornwallis 
never  anticipated  the  contingency  of  a  siege.  The  place  might  answer 
as  a  naval  station,  and  works  would  be  necessary  to  protect  it  in  case  the 
garrison  should  be  reduced,  but  otherwise  it  was  a  bad  selection.  "  Noth 
ing  but  the  hope  of  relief,"  said  Cornwallis  afterward,  "would  have  in 
duced  me  to  attempt  its  defence."  The  town  stood  on  the  bank  of  the 
river,  thirty  or  forty  feet  above  the  water,  but  possessed  no  commanding 
features  as  against  a  land  attack.  Cornwallis  surrounded  it  with  a  line 
of  earthworks.  Of  the  ten  redoubts  in  this  line  two  covered  the  right, 
facing  the  river-road  to  Williamsburg;  three  stood  back  of  the  town,  and 
three  on  the  left,  looking  down  the  river;  the  two  remaining  redoubts, 
known  as  Xos.  9  and  10,  stood  disconnected  in  advance  of,  and  as  an  ad 
ditional  strength  to,  the  left.  A  projecting  redoubt,  called  the  Horn-work, 
commanded  the  road  to  Hampton.  In  the  fourteen  batteries  constructed 
along  the  line  sixty-five  guns  had  been  mounted,  none  of  which  were 
larger  than  eighteen -pounders,  and  to  obtain  some  of  these  the  frigate 
Charon,  in  the  river,  had  been  stripped  of  her  armament. 

These  were  the  immediate  defences  of  Yorktown  ;  but  as  the  ground 
beyond,  especially  on  the  left,  would  favor  a  besieging  force,  and  as  the 
defences  themselves  were  not  complete  when  the  place  was  threatened, 
Cornwallis  determined  to  take  up  a  good  outer  position  also,  about  a 
half  a  mile  in  advance  of  his  inner  line.  He  describes  it  as  "a 
strong  position  out  of  the  town."  Above  Yorktown  a  ravine  extend 
ed  from  the  river  nearly  half-way  around  the  inner  works;  below, 

1  The  incidents  of  the  28th  are  gathered  from  Washington's  "  Journal,"  "  Orderly 
Book  of  the  Siege  of  Yorktown,"  Tarleton's  "Campaigns,"  Deuxpout's  "Campaigns," 
"Journal,"  in  Martin's  Gazetteer  of  Virginia,  Pickering's  "Journal,"  etc. 


THE   SIEGE   OF   YORKTOWN. 


107 


Wormley  Creek  sets  up.  Tliese  two  natural  obstructions  protected  the 
flanks,  and  contracted  the  distance  to  be  fortified  in  solid  ground  be 
tween  them  to  little  more  than  half  a  mile.  This  site  was  somewhat 
elevated,  and  a  few  works  would  be  sufficient  to  secure  it.  It  is  men 
tioned  as  the  "gorge"  or  throat  of  land  between  ravine  and  creek,  over 
which  ran  the  road  to  Hampton  and  the  main  road  to  Willinmsburg. 


BRITISH    OFFICERS    RKCEIVIXG    THE    NKWS    OF    WASHINGTON  S    APPROACH. 

Here  the  engineers  laid  out  three  redoubts,  one  on  each  side  of  the 
latter  road,  in  what  was  then  known  as  Pigeon  Quarter,  and  the  third, 
a  field  work,  on  the  left,  commanding  the  Hampton  Road.  "  Trees  were 
felled,"  says  Tarleton,  "  fleches  were  thrown  up,  and  batteries  were  con 
structed  at  the  points  which  were  deemed  most  vulnerable."  There 
were  intrenchments  at  Moore's  Mill,  near  the  head  of  Wormley  Creek, 
while  on  the  extreme  right,  beyond  the  ravine,  and  on  the  bank  of  the 
York,  "close  to  the  river-road  from  Williamsburg,"  a  large  star-shaped 
work  was  constructed,  known  as  the  Fusileers'  Redoubt,  which  was 
garrisoned  by  a  portion  of  the  Royal  Welsh  Fusileers  —  Twenty -third 


108  THE  YOKKTOWN  CAMPAIGN. 

Foot — under  Captain  Apthorpe,  and  a  body  of  marines.  The  officer 
second  in  command  was  Captain  Thomas  Saumaurez,  who  lived  long 
enough  to  be  promoted  to  the  rank  of  lieutenant-general  in  the  British 
army  on  the  day  of  Queen  Victoria's  coronation.  Opposite  this  re 
doubt  and  the  mouth  of  the  ravine  the  frigate  Guadaloupe  was  moored, 
whose  guns  could  also  protect  that  flank.1  Across  the  river,  there  a 
mile  wide,  the  village  of  Gloucester  had  been  fortified  before  York- 
town,  and  the  defences  consisted  of  a  line  of  intrenchments,  with  four 
redoubts  and  three  batteries,  mounting  nineteen  guns. 

Here,  too,  we  may  stop  to  notice  the  composition  of  the  two  hostile 
armies,  on  whose  operations  so  much  depended.  In  the  opposing  lines  we 
should  have  found  representatives  of  those  four  leading  groups  of  people 
who  claim  superiority  in  arms,  and  each  of  whom,  at  different  periods  of 
their  history,  have  displayed  extraordinary  tenacity  in  supporting  their 
national  cause  —  the  English  and  Germans,  the  French  and  Americans. 
It  was  no  indifferent  collection  of  soldiers  that  had  now  gathered  within 
and  around  Yorktown,but  bodies  of  tried  troops,  who  were,  for  the  most 
part,  the  veterans  of  many  fields,  both  on  this  and  the  European  continent. 

The  allied  army  was  composed  of  three  parts — American  Continen 
tals,  American  militia,  and  French  auxiliaries ;  the  two  former  consti 
tuting  the  right,  the  latter  the  left  wing.  The  Continentals  had  been 
organized  at  Williamsburg,  on  the  27th,  into  three  divisions  of  two  bri 
gades  each,  with  Major-generals  Lincoln,  Lafayette,  and  Steuben  as  di 
vision  commanders.  Lincoln,  in  addition,  was  given  the  temporary  com 
mand  of  the  American  wing.  Lafaj'ette's  division,  which  took  the  right 
of  the  entire  line,  included  the  select  troops  of  the  army,  or  the  corps 

1  Before  the  Revolution  York  town  was  quite  an  emporium  —  the  only  port  from 
which  the  Virginia  planters  shipped  their  tobacco  to  England.  Baltimore  and  Nor 
folk  gradually  reduced  it  by  competition.  Some  two  centuries  or  more  ago  we  first 
hear  of  it  as  one  of  the  few  outposts  or  forts  in  the  colony.  In  1725  it  was  the  centre 
of  a  thriving  county  —  an  Episcopal  parish  of  sixty  communicants,  with  a  church. 
Williamsburg,  the  capital,  with  its  House  of  Burgesses  and  growing  college,  attracting 
thither  the  wisdom  and  fashion  of  the  Dominion,  was  but  a  dozen  miles  away.  Until 
Cornwallis  stationed  himself  there,  the  town  had  escaped  the  ravages  of  war  on  the 
Virginia  coast,  and  after  its  surrender  it  still  contained  about  seventy  houses,  not  more 
than  two  or  three  having  been  wholly  destroyed.  Fifteen  years  later  it  had  not  ex 
tended  its  limits,  and  we  find  its  population,  more  than  half  of  which  was  composed 
of  negroes,  numbering  about  eight  hundred  souls.  The  last  war,  it  need  hardly  be 
«aid,  left  it  in  a  depressed  condition,  almost  beyond  recovery;  and  to-day  it  con 
tains  less  than  three  hundred  inhabitants,  among  whom  are  to  be  found  but  few 
descendants  of  the  ancient  proprietors. 


THE   SIEGE  OF  YORKTOWN.  109 

of  Light  Infantry.  General  Muhlenberg  commanded  the  First  Brigade, 
General  Hazen  the  Second.  The  three  battalions  of  the  First  were 
led  by  Colonel  Yose,  of  Massachusetts,  Lieutenant -colonel  Gimat,  aide 
to  Lafayette,  and  Lieutenant-colonel  Barber,  of  New  Jersey;  those  of 
the  Second  by  Lieutenant-colonel  Hunting-ton,  of  Connecticut,  Lieuten 
ant-colonel  Alexander  Hamilton,  of  New  York,  and  Lieutenant-colonel 
Laurens,  of  South  Carolina,  aide  to  Washington.  Brigaded  with  these, 
also,  was  Hazeifs  old  Canadian  regiment,  some  two  hundred  and  fifty 
strong.  Excluding  the  latter,  the  Light  Infantry  numbered  about  four 
teen  hundred  men,  nearly  all  of  whom  had  been  detached  from  the 
New  England  lines.  The  First  Brigade,  which  had  been  with  him 
through  the  Yirginia  campaign,  Mras  Lafayette's  favorite,  and  he  used 
to  say  of  it  that  liner  troops  could  not  be  found  the  world  over.  Steu- 
ben's  division  included  the  brigades  under  Generals  Wayne  and  Gist. 
In  the  former  were  two  Pennsylvania  regiments,  commanded  by  Colo 
nels  Butler  and  Stewart,  and  a  lately  raised  Yirginia  Continental  de 
tachment,  under  Lieutenant -colonel  Gaskins;  while  two  Maryland  regi 
ments,  also  recently  recruited,  under  Colonel  Adams  arid  Major  Rox 
burgh,  composed  Gist's  brigade.  In  Lincoln's  division  we  have  the 
First  and  Second  New  York  regiments,  under  Colonels  Yan  Schaick 
and  Yan  Cortlandt,  forming  one  brigade,  commanded  by  General  James 
Clinton,  and  Colonel  Olney's  full  Rhode  Island  regiment,  with  the 
two  New  Jersey  regiments,  under  Colonels  Dayton  and  Ogden,  mak 
ing  up  the  remaining  brigade  under  Colonel  Dayton. 

Detachments  of  artillery,  with  siege  and  field  pieces,  including  Colonel 
Lamb's  Second  Artillery,  and  a  few  companies  from  Proctor's  Fourth 
Regiment,  formed  the  Artillery  Brigade,  under  General  Knox.  Three  or 
four  companies  of  Sappers  and  Miners,  with  artificers;  two  companies  of 
Delaware  recruits,  and  about  one  hundred  dragoons,  under  Colonel  Moy- 
lan,  completed  the  Continental  force,  which  mustered  five  thousand  five 
hundred  strong. 

The  militia,  who  all  came  from  Yirginia — those  of  North  Carolina,  as 
already  noticed,  being  posted  at  the  passes  and  fords  in  their  own  State- 
numbered  over  three  thousand  men,  and  were  commanded  by  their  pa 
triotic  Governor,  General  Thomas  Nelson ;  General  Weedon,  formerly  a 
Continental  officer;  and  Generals  Lawson  and  Stevens,  who  had  lately 
done  good  service  at  Guilford  Court  House.  Colonel  William  I.  Lewis, 
of  Campbell  County,  brought  down  a  corps  of  riflemen,  or  "Sons  of  the 
Mountains,"  and  Lieutenant-colonel  Dabney  commanded  what  is  described 
in  orders  as  the  "Yirginia  State  Reinment." 


110  THE   YOEKTOWN   CAMPAIGN. 

For  the  French  contingent  we  have  seven  regiments  of  infantry, 
averaging  nine  hundred  men  each  ;  a  corps  of  six  hundred  artillerists, 
and  a  legion  of  horse  and  foot,  also  six  hundred  in  number — altogether 


GKNKKAL    1>ET£K    H0HUCMBKKG. 


a  noble  body  of  troops.  Their  commander-in-chief,  Lieutenant-general 
Count  de  Bochambean,  brought  with  him  an  enviable  military  reputation, 
based  upon  personal  bravery  and  skilful  leadership.  His  four  major- 
generals  were  the  Baron  de  Viomenil,  the  Count  de  Viomenil,  the  Cheva 
lier  de  Chastellux,  and  the  Marquis  de  St.  Simon,  with  Brigadier  M.  de 
Choisy.  The  regiments  of  infantry  were  those  described  by  the  titles  of 
Bourbonnois,  Royal  Deuxponts,  Saintonge,  Soissonois,  Touraine,  Agenois, 
and  Gatenois,  commanded  respectively  by  the  Colonels  Marqnis  de  Laval, 
M.  Guillaume  de  Deuxponts,  M.  Custine,  the  Viscount  de  Noailles,  Vis 
count  de  Pondeux,  the  Marquis  d'Audechamp,  and  the  Marquis  de  Ros- 
taing.  Lieutenant-colonel  d'Aboville  commanded  the  artillery,  and  the 
Duke  de  Lauzun  the  legionary  corps.  An  able  and  brilliant  staff  attended 
the  general  officers,  one  of  whose  members  was  Berthier,  afterward  mar 
shal  under  Napoleon  ;  and  we  may  notice  that  the  major  of  the  regiment 


THE   SIEGE   OF   YORKTOWN.  Ill 

Saintonge  was  M.  Fleury,  who  had  previously  served  in  the  American 
army  with  so  much  distinction,  as  at  Mud  Island  and  Stony  Point. 

Of  the  British  troops  in  York  town  it  will  suffice  to  say  that  they 
formed  the  elite  of  the  King's  army  in  America.  The  veterans  who  came 
with  Cornwallis  from  the  South  yielded  the  palm  to  no  one,  though  in 
numbers  they  were  terribly  reduced.  In  the  command  were  to  be  found 
the  Brigade  of  Guards,  mustering  scarcely  five  hundred  men  ;  the  Twenty- 
third,  Thirty-third,  Seventy-first  Foot,  the  light  company  of  the  Eighty- 
second,  Tarleton's  Legion,  some  North  Carolina  volunteers,  and  the  Ger 
man  regiment,  under  Colonel  de  Bose.  Including  the  troops  sent  under 
Arnold  and  Phillips — two  battalions  of  light  infantry,  the  Seventeenth, 
Forty-third,  Seventy-sixth,  Eightieth,  Simcoe's  Rangers,  Anspachers,  un 
der  Colonels  de  Voit  and  de  Seybothen  ;  the  Hessian  regiment,  Prince 
Ilereditaire ;  small  detachments  of  light  dragoons,  yagers,  artillery,  and 
light  companies — and  we  have  a  total  of  about  seven  thousand  five  hun 
dred  officers  and  men,  besides  eight  or  nine  hundred  marines,  cooped  up 
in  Yorktown.  A  noticeable  fact  was  the  dearth  of  superior  officers. 
O'llara  was  Cornwallis' s  only  brigadier,  and  his  list  of  field -officers 
showed  but  two  colonels,  twelve  lieutenant -colonels,  and  twelve  majors 
in  the  entire  force.1 

In  round  numbers,  we  may  put  sixteen  thousand  besiegers  against 
seven  thousand  five  hundred  besieged,  exclusive  of  eight  hundred  ma 
rines  engaged  on  land  on  each  side,  as  the  strength,  on  the  rolls,  of  the 
combatants  at  Yorktown. 

Adding  further  details,  and  the  organization  of  the  opposite  armies 
can  be  presented  as  follows — that  of  the  American  wing  showing  the  final 
arrangement  after  changes  made  to  the  8th  of  October: 

1  Many  of  tliese  English  officers  rose  to  distinction.  Cornwallis  became  Lord- 
lieutenant  of  Ireland  and  Governor-general  of  India,  where  he  died  in  1805.  O'llara 
was  with  the  English  in  Toulon  when  it  surrendered  in  1793;  after  that  he  became 
governor  of  Gibraltar.  Colonel  Abercrombie,  who  commanded  the  left  wing  of  the 
Yorktown  defences,  died  a  general  in  the  British  service.  The  same  rank  was  attained 
by  Captains  Samuel  Graham,  of  the  Seventy-sixth;  Charles  Asgill,  of  the  Guards;  and 
Saumaurez,  of  the  Twenty -third.  Major  Needham,  of  the  Seventy -sixth,  and  Major 
Ross,  aide  to  Cornwallis,  also  became  generals ;  so,  also,  Tarleton  and  Simcoe,  the  latter 
being  governor  of  Upper  Canada  in  1791-4.  General  Philips,  who  died  at  Petersburg, 
just  before  Cornwallis  entered  Virginia,  in  May,  1781,  was  an  accomplished  officer, 
whose  advice  would  have  been  invaluable  to  the  former  in  this  campaign.  Arnold, 
who  brought  the  second  expedition  to  Virginia,  was  recalled  to  Now  York  by  Clinton 
before  Cornwallis  started  after  Lafayette.  Clinton  himself  returned  to  England  in 
May,  1782,  and  was  graciously  received  by  his  sovereign. 


112  THE   YORKTOWN   CAMPAIGN. 


ALLIED    ARMY. 

GEORGE    WASHINGTON, 

COMMANDER-IN-CHIEF. 


AMERICAN    WING. 
C  ONTINENTAL  S. ' 

GENERAL  GEORGE  WASHINGTON,  of  Virginia.2 

SECRETARY. 
Colonel  Jonathan  Trumbull,  Jr.,  of  Connecticut. 

AIDES-DE-CAMP. 

Lieutenant  -  colonel  Tench  Tilghman,  of  Maryland;  Lieutenant  -  colonel  David 
Humphreys,  of  Connecticut;  Lieutenant  -  colonel  David  Cobb,  of  Massachusetts; 
Lieutenant-colonel  William  S.  Smith,  of  New  York  ;  Lieutenant-colonel  John  Lau 
ren  s,  of  South  Carolina. 

ADJUTANT-GENERAL. 

Brigadier-general  Edward  Hand,  of  Pennsylvania. 

QrARTERMASTER-GENERAL. 

Colonel  Timothy  Pickering,  of  Massachusetts. 

ASSISTANT  QUARTERMASTER-GENERAL. 
Lieutenant-colonel  Henry  Dearborn,  of  New  Hampshire.3 

COMMISSARY-GENERAL. 
Colonel  Ephraim  Blaine,  of  Pennsylvania. 

CHIEF  PHYSICIAN  AND  SURGEON. 
Doctor  James  Craik,  of  Virginia. 

CHIEF  OF  ENGINEERS. 

Brigadier-general  Chevalier  Du  Portail.4 

SUPERINTENDENT  OF  MATERIALS  IN  THE  TRENCHES. 

Colonel  Samuel  Elbert,  of  Georgia. 

1  Official  rolls  and  records  show  that  the  officers  named  in  this  roster  were  pres 
ent  at  the  siege. 

2  Washington,  while  at  the  head  of  the  entire  army,  retained  active  command  of 
the  American  wing,  issuing  to  it  daily  orders  as  usual.     Lincoln,  next  in  rank,  had  his 
tent  on  the  right  of  the  line,  as  the  nominal  head,  but  took  his  turn  on  duty  with  the 
other  division  commanders. 

3  Colonel  Pickering  requested  Washington  to  appoint  Dearborn  his  assistant,  at 
Peekskill,  June  19th,  1781 ;   and  the  appointment  was  made. — Sparks'  MS.  Collection, 
Harvard  College  Library. 

4  General  Du  Portail,  Lieutenant-colonel  Gimat,  and  Major  Galvan  were  French 
officers,  holding  commissions  in  the  Continental  Army. 


THE   SIEGE   OF  YOKKTOWN.  113 

ARTILLERY   BRIGADE. 

BRIGADIER-GENERAL  HENRY  KXOX,  of  Massachusetts.  R;,nk  nnd 

File.1 

(  Colonel  John   Lamb,  of  New  York ] 

Second  Regiment  )  ,.  7      ,  ,-,,  Oi  c  -\t        \ 

•{  Lieutenant-colonel  Ebenezer  Stevens,  ot  Massachusetts    .  V  22o 

[N.  Y.  &  Conn.l        ,  «  xr       v    i 

(  Major  Sebastian  l>auman,  or  New    l  ork ; 

First  Regiment.  \ 

Lieutenant-colonel  Edward  Carrington,  V  of  Virginia    .     .     .        25 
Captain  Wkitehead  Coleman  .  ) 

Detachments.2  -> 

Fourth  Regiment. 

Captains  Patrick  Duffy,  William  Fer-  ^  of  Pennsylvania      .        GO 
guson,  and  James  Smith  .  ) 


'er-  >  of  Pennsylvania 


CAVALRY. 

Fourth  Regiment  Dragoons.8 — Colonel  Stephen  Moylan,  of  Pennsylvania     .       60 
Armand's  Legion '.     .     .        40 

INFANTRY. 
LAFAYETTE'S  DIVISION — LIGHT  INFANTRY. 

MAJOR-GENERAL  MARQUIS  DE   LAFAYETTE.4 

Division  Inspector,  Major  William  Barber,  of  New  Jersey. 

FIRST  BRIGADE. 

BRIGADIER-GENERAL  PETER  MUHLEXBERG,  of  Virginia. 
Brigade  Major,  Captain  John  Hobby,  Tenth  Massachusetts. 

1  In  the  absence  of  official  rolls,  the  figures  representing  the  strength  of  the  several 
Continental  regiments  and  detachments  are  given  as  approximately  correct.     See,  in 
Appendix,  "  Strength  of  the  Armies  at  Yorktown." 

2  The  detachment  from  Proctor's  Fourth  Regiment  included  the  companies  which 
came  with  Wayne  to  Virginia.     Lieutenant-colonel  Carrington,  of  Harrison's  First,  had 
not  served  with  his  regiment  for  some  time.     He  acted  as  quartermaster  for  Greene  in 
his  North  Carolina  campaign,  and  proved  very  efficient.     He  appears  to  have  been 
alone  again  "  on  command  "  at  Yorktown,  with  Captain  Coleman's  company  from  the 
First.     Coleman  is  given  in  the  detail  of  artillery  officers. 

3  In  Penn.  Archives,  O.  S.,  vol.  ix.     General  Orders,  of  September  26th,  1781,  men 
tion  dragoons  from  "  Colonel  Moylan's  command." 

4  The  names  of  all  the  aides  of  the  division  commanders  do  not  appear.    In  the  early 
Virginia  movements  Lafayette  had  Majors  George  Washington  (nephew  of  the  chief), 
Richard  C.  Anderson,  and  William  Archibald,  of  Virginia.     With  Steuben  were  Cap 
tains  North  and  Walker.     Major  William  Popham  served  with  General  James  Clinton. 


114  THE   YORKTOWN  CAMPAIGN. 

Three  Battalions.  Rank  and 

File. 

(  Colonel  Joseph  Vose.  of  Massachusetts  .  ) 

MM-.      n  i     VKI        e  v\    A     TI     A*  [  8  Mass.  Companies.     250 

(  Major  Caleb  Gibbs,  of  Rhode  Island     .     .     .     .  ) 

j  Lieutenant-colonel  Gimat )  5  Conn.,  2  Mass.,  1  ) 

(  Major  John  Palsgrave  Wyllys,  of  Connecticut     .  |       li.  I ) 

(  Lieutenant-colonel  Francis  Barber,  of  New  Jersey  ) 

U"    \     TUT    •  1      T>     T>    'A     r    *    TI  »  1  '          5    K    IL'    K    J''    &C"         2°° 

(  Major  Joseph  R.  Keid  [or  Hazel)  sj ) 

SECOND  BRIGADE. 

BREVET  BRIGADIER  GENERAL  MOSES  HAZEX,  of  Canada. 

Brigade   Major,  Captain  Leonard  Bleeker,  First  New  York. 

Four  Battalions.* 

(  Lieutenant-colonel  Ebenezer  Iluntington,  of  Conn.  ) 

I A  M  Mass.,  Conn.   .     .     200 

(  Major  Nathan  nice,  of  Massachusetts     .     .     .     .  ) 

(  Lieutenant-colonel  Alexander  Hamilton,  of  N.  Y.  ) 

2.  \         .                           '                      '      .  \2  N.  1 .,  2  Conn.     .      200 

(  Major  Nicholas  Fun,  of  New   York ) 

(  Lieutenant-colonel  John  Laurens,  of  South  Carolina  ) 

H.  \  '  UN.  IL,  Mass.,  Conn.  200 

(  Major  John  N.  Camming,  of  New  Jersey  .     .     .  ) 

(  Lieutenant-colonel  Edward  Antill )  Ilazen's       Canadian  ) 

M    J  v  200 

(  Major  Tarleton  Woodson \       Regiment  .     .     .  j 


LINCOLN'S  DIVISION. 

MAJOR-GEXERAL  BEXJAMIX  LIXCOLX,  of  Massachusetts. 
Division  Inspector,  Major . 

CLINTON'S   BRIGADE. 

BRIGADIER-GENERAL  JAMES  CLIXTOX,  of  New  York. 
Brigade  Major,  Captain  Aaron  Aorson,  First  New  York. 

(  Colonel  Goose  Van  Schaick \ 

First  Regiment,  New  York   .  -\  Lieutenant-colonel  Cornelius  Van  Dyke    .     .  >•  325 

'  Major  John  Graham ) 

{Colonel  Philip  Van  Cortlandt \ 
Lieutenant-colonel  Robert  Cochran .     .     .     .  >•  350 
Major  Nicholas  Fish  (with  Light  Infantry)  .  ) 

1  Major  Galvan,  who  had  been  with  this  battalion,  was  relieved,  and  Major  Gibbs, 
of  Washington's  Guards,  appointed  in  his  place. 

2  The  battalions  1  and  3  had  lately  composed  the  full  regiment,  under  Colonel 
Scainmell.     Divided  by  General  Orders,  October  8th. 


THE  SIEGE   OF  YORKTOWN.  115 

DAYTON'S  BRIGADE. 
COLONEL  ELIAS  DAYTON,  of  New  Jersey. 
Brigade  Major,  Captain  Richard  Cox,  First  New  Jersey.          Rank  and 

File. 

,,.    .  i  x-  (  Colonel  Mathias  Ogden ) 

First  and  Second  New  Jersey  )  / 

T>     .  /     -L  j\  }  Lieutenant-colonel  William  De  Hart    .     .     .  >  600 

Regiments  (united)  .  I  .  I 

I  Major  John  Hollinshcad ; 

{Lieutenant-colonel  Com'dant  Jeremiah  Olncy  } 
Major  Coggeshall  Olney >  450 
Major  John  S.  Dexter ) 

STEUBEN'S  DIVISION. 

MAJOR-GENERAL  BARON  STEUBEN. 
Division  Inspector,  Major  Galvan. 

WAYNE'S   BRIGADE. 

BRIGADIER-GENERAL  ANTHONY  WAYNE,  of  Pennsylvania. 
Brigade  Major,  Lieutenant  Richard  Fullerton,  of  Pennsylvania. 

(  Colonel  Walter  Stewart ) 

First  Battalion,  Pennsylvania.  •<  Major  James  Hamilton r  275 

(  Major  William  Alexander ) 

I  Colonel  Richard  Butler \ 

Second  Battalion,1  Penn.  .  .  •<  Lieutenant-colonel  Josiah  Harmar  ..../-  275 

(  Major  Evan  Edwards ) 

Virginia  Battalion  ....  Lieutenant-colonel  Thomas  Gaskins  .  .  .  350 

GIST'S  BRIGADE. 

BRIGADIER-GENERAL  MORDECAI  GIST,  of  Maryland. 
Brigade  Major,  Captain  Lilburn  Williams,  Third  Maryland. 

Third  Regiment,  Maryland    .     Lieutenant-colonel  Com'dant  Peter  Adams    .      550 
Fourth  Regiment,  Maryland  .     Major  Alexander  Roxburg 450 

SAPPERS   AND   MINERS. 

Captain  James  Gilliland,  New  York ) 

Captain  David  Bushnell,  Connecticut >•    50 

Captain-lieutenant  David  Kirkpatrick,  New  Jersey  (?) ) 

Delaware  Recruits    ....      Captain  William  McKennan 60 

1  A  third  Pennsylvania  battalion  arrived  just  as  the  operations  carne  to  an  end. 
It  was  under  Colonel  Craig  and  Lieutenant-colonel  Mentges.  Major-general  St.  Clair 
also  reported,  but  had  no  command  at  the  siege. 


11G  THE   YORKTOWN  CAMPAIGN. 

MILITIA. 
GENERAL  THOMAS   NELSON,  Governor  of  Virginia. 

BRIGADES.  K:n.k  and 

File. 
BRIGADIER-GENERAL  GEORGE  WEEDOX 1500 

BRIGADIER-GENERAL  ROBERT  LAWSON 750 

BRIGADIER-GENERAL  EDWARD  STEVENS V50 

State  Regiment Lieutenant-colonel  Dabney 200 


FKENCII    WING.1 
LIEUTENANT-GENERAL   COUNT   DE   ROCIIAMBEAU. 

AIDES-DE-CAMP. 

Count  de  Fersen  ;  Marquis  de  Vauban  ;  Marquis  de  Damas;  Chevalier  de  La 
in  eth  ;  M.  Dninas ;  De  Lauberdiere ;  Baron  de  Clozen. 

MARECIIAfX-DE-CAMP. 

Major-general  Baron  de  Viomenil;  Major-general  Marquis  de  St.  Simon;  Ma 
jor-general  Viscount  de  Viomenil ;  Major-general  Chevalier  de  Chastellux. 

M.  de  Choisy,  Brigadier-general. 

INTENDANT. 

M.  de  Tarle. 

QUARTERMASTER-GENERAL. 

M.  de  Beville. 

COMMISSARY-GENERAL. 

Claude  Blanchard. 

MEDICAL  DEPARTMENT. 

M.  de  Coste,  Physician-in-chief ;   M.  Robillard,  Surgeon-in-chief ;   M.  de  Mars, 

Superintendent  of  Hospitals. 

ENGINEERS. 

Colonel  Desandrouins ;  Lieutenant-colonel  de  Querenet;  Major  de  Pairs;  and 
nine  line-officers. 

ARTILLERY.  Rank  and 

File. 

Colonel    Commandant   d'Aboville ;    Adjutant   Manduit.      Director    of   the 

Park,  M.  Nadal 600 

1  This  roster  of  French  officers  is  taken  from  the  lists  printed  in  the  Nag.  of  Am. 
Hist.,  vol.  iii.,  No.  7;  and  by  Blanchard  in  his  "Journal."  Many  staff  -  officers,  assist 
ants,  etc.,  are  here  omitted. 


THE   SIEGE  OF  YORKTOWN. 


CAVALRY. 

Lauzun's  Legion,  or  Volnn-    (  Duke  de  Lanzun 
tccrs  ....    (  Count  Arthur  Dillon 


Rank  and 
File. 


INFANTRY. 
BRIGADE  BOURBONNOIS. 

r  Colonel  Marquis  de  Laval "i 

j   Second-colonel  Vicomte  de  Rochambcau     . 

Regiment  Bourbonnois     .     .  <    T .  /      7  j    r>         n 

[  Lieutenant-colonel  de  Brcssolles    .     .     .     .   | 

I  Major  dc  Gambs J 

Colonel  Count  de  Deuxponts 

Second-colonel  Count  Guillaume  de  Deux- 

Regiment  Royal  Deuxponts     4       ponts >    900 

Lieutenant-colonel  Baron  d'Ezbeck     . 
Major  Desprez 

BRIGADE  SOISSONOIS. 

f  Colonel  Marquis  de  St.  Maime ^ 

j  Second-colonel  Vicomte  de  Noailles    .     .     . 
Regiment  boissonois    ...-<,.  ,      ,    .,  .       . 

I  Lieutenant-colonel  d  Anselme I 

I  Major  d'Espeyron J 

r  Colonel  Marquis  de  Custine ^ 

Second-colonel  Count  de  Charlus  .  j 

Regiment  Samtonge    .     .     .  ^  >•    900 

I  Lieutenant-colonel  de  Ja  V  atelle  .   | 

I  Major  M.  Fleury J 

BRIGADE  AGENOIS. 

{Colonel  Marquis  d'Audechamp  .  \ 

Lieutenant-colonel  Chevalier  de  Cadignau   .  >  1000 

Major  Pandin  de  Beauregard ) 

(  Colonel  Marquis  de  Rostaing \ 

Regiment  Gatenois.  .   •<  Lieutenant-colonel  de  1'Estrade V  1000 

(  Major  de  Tourville ) 

(  Colonel  Vicomte  de  Pondeux } 

Regiment  louvainc   (not  bn-    \  _.  ,      ,   ,    _. 

<  Lieutenant-colonel  de  Montlezun   .     .     .     .  V  1000 

gaded) i  ,r  .       ,    ,.,          ...  ( 

\  Major  de  Menonville ; 


1  The  regiments  Agenois,Gatenois,  and  Touraine  are  those  which  St.  Simon  brought 
from  the  West  Indies  in  De  Grasse's  fleet. 


118  THE  YORKTOWN  CAMPAIGN. 

BRITISH    ARMY.1 

LIEUTENANT-GENERAL  EARL   CHARLES    CORNWALLIS. 

AIDES-DE-CAMP. 

Lieutenant-colonel  Lord  Chewton ;    Major  Alexander  Ross ;    Major  Charles  Coch- 

rane,  Acting  Aide. 

DEPUTY  ADJUTANT-GENERAL. 
Major  John  Despard. 
COMMISSARY. 
-  Perkins. 

DEPUTY  QUARTERMASTER-GENERAL. 

Major  Richard  England. 

DEPUTY  QUARTERMASTER-GENERAL'S  ASSISTANTS. 

Captain  Campbell,  Captain  Valiancy,  Lieutenant  Oldfield,  and  Ensign  St.  John. 

MAJORS  OF  BRIGADE. 
Edward  Brabazon,  -     -  Manley,  J.  Baillie,  Francis  Richardson. 

ENGINEERS. 
•Lieutenant  Alexander  Sutherland,  commanding ;  Lieutenants  Haldane  and  Stratton. 

ROYAL    ARTILLERY.  Bank  and 

File. 
Captain  George  Rochfort,  commanding ) 

Captain-lieutenant  Edward  Fage  .          j 

CAVALRY. 

Queen's  Rangers — Lieutenant-colonel  J.  Graves  Simcoe 248 

British  Legion  —Lieutenant-colonel  Banistre  Tarleton '.     .     .      19^ 

INFANTRY. 

BRIGADE   OF  GUARDS. 
BRIGADIER-GENERAL  CHARLES  O'HARA 467 


1  This  list  is  compiled  from  copies  of  the  MS.  rolls  of  the  Surrender  signed  by 
Major  Despard,  and  from  Gaines's  Army  Register  for  1782.  All  the  officers  named  were 
present  at  the  siege.  The  figures  are  taken  from  the  official  return  of  the  American 
Commissary  of  Prisoners,  in  Appendix. 


THE   SIEGE   OF  YORKTOWN.  119 

LIGHT   INFANTRY.  Rank  and 

File. 

Lieutenant-colonel  Robert  Abercrombie ) 

/  594 
Major  Thomas  Armstrong ) 

LIEUTENANT-COLONEL  YORKE'S   BRIGADE. 

Seventeenth — Lieutenant-colonel  Henry  Johnson 20,5 

Twenty-third — Captain  Apthorpe  (?) 205 

Thirty-third — Lieutenant-colonel  John  Yorke 225 

(  Lieutenant-colonel  Duncan  McPherson \ 

Seventy-first.  •<  Major  Patrick  Campbell >  242 

(  Major  James  Campbell ; 

LIEUTENANT-COLONEL  DUNDAS'S   BRIGADE. 

Forty-third — Major  George  Hewett(?) 307 

Seventy-sixth — Major  Francis  Needham 628 

(  Lieutenant-colonel  Thomas  Dun  das   ....                               .  ) 
Eightieth.  ]  \  588 

(  Major  James  Gordon ) 

GERMAN  TROOPS. 

(  Colonel  do  Voit ) 

Two  Anspach  Battalions.  •  >  948 

(  Colonel  de  Seybothen ) 

HESSIAN. 

Prince  Hereditairc — Lieutenant-colonel  Matthew  de  Fuchs 425 

Regiment  De  Bose — Major  O'Reilly 271 

Yagers — Captain  John  Evvald 68 

<     c 

North  Carolina  Volunteers — Lieutenant-colonel  John  Hamilton 114 

Pioneers 33 

These  were  the  troops  who  lay  on  their  arms  on  the  night  of  the  28th 
within  a  mile  of  each  other,  just  outside  of  Yorktown,  and  whose  exer 
tions  were  to  determine  the  control  of  this  continent. 

The  investment  of  the  place  so  auspiciously  opened  by  the  allies  was 
more  securely  established  in  the  course  of  the  two  following  days.  On 
the  29th  the  American  wing  moved  to  the  right,  and  nearer  to  the  enemy, 
and  the  entire  army  spread  out  into  permanent  camps,  forming  a  semi 
circle  from  the  banks  of  the  York,  above  the  town,  around  to  Wormley 
Creek,  an  arm  of  the  York  below.  About  the  centre  of  this  line  the 


120 


THE   YOKKTOWX   CAMPAIGN. 


ground  is  intersected  with  marshes,  running  out  in  the  shape  of  a  bird's 
claw,  whose  rivulets  unite  to  form  what  at  that  time  was  known  as 
Beaverdam  Creek,  or  the  head -waters  of  Warwick  River.  This  creek 
was  made  the  dividing  line  of  the  allied  army — the  American  wing  upon 

the  right,  and  the  French  upon  the  left. 
A  bridge  or  causeway  had  been  thrown 
across  it  the  night  before,  and  on  the 
following  morning,  the  29th,  parties  of 
light  infantry  and  riflemen  reconnoitred 
the  ground  within  cannon-shot  of  the 
enemy's  outworks,  and  skirmished  suc 
cessfully  with  the  pickets  of  the  Ans- 
pacli  battalions,  on  the  right.  About 
four  o'clock  in  the  afternoon  the  Amer 
ican  troops  encamped  on  the  selected 
site.1 

The  morning  of  the  30th  opened  with 
a  surprise  and  an  advantage  for  the  allied 
forces.  It  was  discovered  at  an  early  hour 

that  the  enemy  had  quietly  abandoned  their  outer  position  during  the  night 
and  retired,  with  their  guns,  to  the  immediate  defences  of  Yorktown.  With 
the  besiegers  the  motive  or  necessity  for  this  move  was  a  matter  of  specu 
lation.  Both  French  and  American  officers  pronounced  it  unmilitary,  upon 
the  ground  that  for  the  besieged  the  position  was  a  defensible  point,  which 
should  have  been  held  as  long  as  possible,  to  gain  time,  in  view  of  possible 


LIEUTENANT-COLONEL    DAVID    HUMPHREYS 

AIDE    TO    WASHINGTON. 


1  Washington's  memorandum  for  the  29th  is  as  follows:  ''Moved  the  American 
troops  more  to  the  right,  and  encamped  on  the  east  side  of  Beaverdam  Creek,  with  a 
morass  in  front,  about  cannon-shot  from  the  enemy's  lines — spent  this  day  in  reconnoi- 
tering  the  enemy's  position,  and  determining  upon  a  plan  of  attack  and  approach  which 
must  be  done  without  the  assistance  of  the  shipping  above  the  Town,  as  the  admiral 
(notwithstanding  my  earnest  solicitation)  declined  hazarding  any  vessels  on  that  sta 
tion." 

"  29th. — The  American  army  marched  over  a  bridge,  and  took  a  position  extending 
from  the  morass,  which  separated  us  from  the  French  army,  to  beyond  the  Hampton 
road  from  York." — Col.  Pickering's  Journal. 

Rochambeau  says,  in  his  "Memoirs:"  "On  the  29th  the  American  army  crossed  the 
marshes,  leaving  its  left  on  their  borders,  and  its  right  on  the  York  river.  The  invest 
ing  of  this  place  was  now  as  complete  and  restrained  as  it  possibly  could  be."  The 
point  of  crossing  was  a  short  distance  above  the  present  Wynn's  Mill,  on  Beaverdam 
Creek.  It  was  this  creek,  better  known  as  the  Warwick,  that  was  made  the  Confeder 
ate  line  of  defence  in  McClellan's  campaign  of  1802. 


THE    SIEGE   OF    YOKKTOWN.  121 

relief.1  Sir  Henry  Clinton  likewise  criticised  it  with  some  severity;  but 
that  was  at  a  later  date,  when  his  controversy  with  Cornwallis  had  taken 
a  somewhat  bitter  turn.  It  appeared  to  him  extraordinary  that  the  latter 
should  have  quitted  "such  works  in  such  a  position  without  a  conflict," 
especially  as,  in  a  previous  letter,  he  had  led  the  commander-in-chief  to 
infer  that  it  would  be  held.  In  addition,  several  officers  of  rank,  who  had 
seen  the  ground,  had  given  it  as  their  opinion,  before  a  council  of  war,  in 
Kew  York,  that  "his  Lordship  might  defend  that  position  twenty-one  days, 
open  trenches,  against  20,000  men  and  a  proportionable  artillery."2  Corn 
wallis,  however,  was,  at  that  moment,  the  best  judge  of  the  situation.  He 
was  obliged  to  regard  his  reduced  force,  the  formidable  aspect  of  the  be 
siegers,  and  the  fact  that  his  left  Hank  could  be  turned  by  the  passage 
of  Wormley  Creek.  Despatches,  too,  from  Clinton  had  reached  him  the 
day  before,  announcing  the  probable  departure  of  a  relieving  fleet  about 
the  5th  of  October,  in  which  case,  uutil  its  arrival,  Yorktown  could  be 
held  at  the  inner  line.  The  contents  of  Clinton's  letter  were  certainly 
assuring,  twenty-three  sail-of-the-line  and  five  thousand  men  being  ex 
pected  to  sail  "  in  a  few  days,"  to  relieve,  and  afterward  co-operate  with, 
Cornwallis.  This  intelligence  gave  the  latter  the  "greatest  satisfaction," 
and  he  immediately  replied:  "I  shall  retire  this  night  within  the  works, 
and  have  no  doubt,  if  relief  comes  in  time,  York  and  Gloucester  will  be 
both  in  the  possession  of  his  Majesty's  troops."  Perhaps  Cornwallis  was 
too  hopeful,  and  forgot  the  perversity  of  fortune  where  the  navy  was 
concerned.  Clinton  seems  to  have  thought  so. 

But,  as  the  event  proved,  the  abandonment  of  the  outer  works  was 
immaterial.  It  only  hastened  the  end.  The  allies  accepted  the  move 
with  satisfaction,  as  greatly  simplifying  future  operations.  "On  the  30th, 
in  the  morning,"  wrote  Washington  to  the  President  of  Congress,  "we 
discovered  that  the  enemy  had  evacuated  all  their  exterior  works,  and 
withdrawn  themselves  to  those  near  the  town.  By  this  means  we  are  in 
possession  of  very  advantageous  grounds,  \vhich  command  their  line  of 
works  in  a  very  near  advance."  The  abandoned  position  was  occupied 
by  the  allies  on  the  same  forenoon.  French  chasseurs  and  grenadiers 
took  possession  of  the  two  redoubts  at  Pigeon  Quarter,  while  the  Ameri 
can  Light  Infantry  held  the  ground  on  their  right,  where,  at  night,  fatigue 


1  Wayne,  Deuxponts,  Butler.  Turk-ton,  on  the  British  side,  regarded  the  move  as 
premature,  and  declared  that  it  "  unexpectedly  hastened  the  surrender  of  the  British 
army." 

4  Clinton's  ''Observations  on  Stedman's  History  of  the  American  War,"  p.  29/. 


122  THE   YOEKTOWN   CAMPAIGN. 

parties  began  a  new  redoubt,  and  proceeded  to  change  the  battery  on  the 
right  of  the  Hampton  Road  into  a  fourth  enclosed  work.1 

On  the  same  morning  French  light  parties  —  the  "volunteers"  of 
Baron  St.  Simon — drove  in  the  enemy's  pickets  on  the  extreme  left,  in 
front  of  the  Fusileer  redoubt,  and  a  sharp  skirmish  occurred,  with  the 
loss  of  one  killed  arid  two  or  three  wounded,  including  among  the  lat 
ter  M.  de  Bouillet,  an  officer  of  the  regiment  Agenois.  This  enabled 
the  left  brigade  of  the  French  to  occupy  a  more  advantageous  position. 
The  redoubt  itself  was  bravely  defended. 

By  this  change  in  the  situation  the  generals  and  engineers,  who  had 
spent  most  of  the  29th  in  reconnoitring,  were  given  the  opportunity 
of  making  a  closer  examination  of  the  immediate  defences  of  York- 
town.  Washington  and  other  general  officers  rode  to  Pigeon  Quarter 
at  an  early  hour  and  surveyed  the  works,  which  were  in  full  view. 
The  group,  attracting  the  enemy's  attention,  were  complimented  with 
a  discharge  of  cannon-shot,  which  struck  into  the  trees  above  them,  but 
the  chief  remained  under  fire  until  he  had  finished  his  observations. " 
The  engineers  went  the  rounds,  and  noted  the  topography,  which  was 
found  very  favorable  for  the  prosecution  of  the  siege.  Means  of  shel 
ter,  small  commanding  knolls  and  ravines,  were  conveniently  situated. 
Vigilance,  energy,  and  skilful  management  would  bring  success.  The 
outlook  wras  eminently  promising,  and  under  its  inspiration  Washing 
ton  again  reminded  his  troops  of  their  duty,  as  follows:  ".  .  .  The  ad 
vanced  season  and  various  conditions  render  it  indispensably  necessary 
to  conduct  the  attacks  against  York  with  the  utmost  rapidity.  The 
General  therefore  expects  and  requires  the  officers  and  soldiers  of  this 
army  to  pursue  the  duties  of  their  respective  departments  and  stations 
with  the  most  uriabating  ardor.  The  present  moment  offers,  in  pros 
pect,  the  epoch  which  will  decide  American  Independence,  the  glory 
and  superiority  of  the  allies.  A  vigorous  use  of  the  means  in  our 
power  cannot  but  insure  success.  The  passive  conduct  of  the  enemy 

1  Writing  to  Hon.  David  Jameson,  at  Richmond,  from  "  Camp  before  York,"  October 
1st,  Governor  Nelson  says  :  "  Our  progress  lias  been  more  considerable  for  the  time  than 
could  have  been  expected,  and  attended  with  less  opposition  and  loss.     Yesterday 
morning  it  was  discovered  that  the  enemy  had  evacuated  their  outposts  at  Moore's 
Mill,  Pigeon   Quarter,  and  every  other  place   beyond   the   creek,  except   at  Nelson's 
Farm.     Our  troops  are  to-day  working  on  grounds  they  relinquished.      The  French 
took  possession  of  Pigeon  Hill.     There  have  been  two  men  killed  and  six  wounded.'' 
— Pub.  Va.  Hist.  Soc. 

2  Autobiography  of  Colonel  Van  Cortlandt.—  Am.  May.  of  Hint.,  May,  1878. 


THE   SIEGE   OF   YORKTOWN.  123 

argues  his  weakness  and  the  uncertainty  of  his  councils.  The  liberties 
of  America,  and  the  honor  of  the  Allied  Arms  are  in  our  hands.  Such 
objects  must  excite  a  patriotic  emulation  in  the  greatest  actions  and 
exertions;  their  consequences  will  amply  compensate  every  danger  and 
fatigue.  .  .  ."l 

This  favorable  prospect  was  clouded  only  by  the  fall,  early  on  the 
30th,  of  the  brave  and  much -loved  Colonel  Alexander  Scammell,  of 
New  Hampshire.  When  the  pickets  reported  the-  evacuation  of  the  en 
emy's  outer  position  he  went  forward,  with  a  small  party,  as  field-offi 
cer  of  the  day,  to  reconnoitre  the  deserted  works.  Proceeding  alone  a 
short  distance  toward  Yorktown,  he  was  suddenly  surprised  by  some 
troopers  of  Tarleton's  Legion,  under  Lieutenant  Cameron,  and  mortally 
wounded  the  moment  after  his  surrender.3  One  of  the  troopers,  com 
ing  up  behind,  shot  him  in  the  back,  although  it  must  have  been  evi 
dent  that  he  could  not  escape.  His  captors  hurried  him  roughly  into 
Yorktown,  where  his  wound  was  dressed,  and  on  the  same  day  he  re 
turned  on  parole  to  Williamsburg.  There  he  lingered  until  the  even 
ing  of  the  6th,  when  he  sunk  rapidly  and  died.  One  of  the  heroes  of 
Saratoga,  lately  adjutant- general  of  the  army,  a  noble  and  gifted  soul, 
with  an  enviable  future  before  him,  his  fall  was  hardly  less  than  a 
public  loss.3 


1  Orders  for  Sept.  30. —  Toi-Hown  Orderly  Boole. 

*  That  Scammell  was  shot  after  his  surrender  is  well  established — an  accident,  per 
haps,  in  the  haste  of  the  surprise. 

3  Colonel  Scammell's  death  was  universally  regretted  in  the  army.  Quartermaster- 
general  Pickering  says  of  the  wounding  that  it  was  "barbarously  done."  "After  two 
dragoons  had  him  their  prisoner,  a  third  came  up  and  shot  him  through  the  side.  Of 
this  wound  he  died  the  6th  inst.,  at  Williamsburg,  lamented  by  all  who  knew  him,  and 
who  valued  friendship,  integrity,  and  truth."  Colonel  Harry  Lee  eulogizes  him  in  his 
"Memoirs."  Colonel  Humphreys  wrote  an  epitaph  for  his  monument,  and, in  his  "Ad 
dress  to  the  Armies  of  America,"  remembers  him  with  a  feeling  tribute  : 

"  Ripe  were  thy  virtues,  though  too  few  thy  days, 
Be  this  thy  fame — through  life  of  all  approv'd, 
To  die  lamented,  honor'd,  and  bclov'd." 

The  letters  of  Colonels  Lamb  and  Dearborn,  in  the  Appendix,  are  of  interest;  also 
the  letter  from  Colonel  Smith,  quoted  in  Mag.  of  Am.  Hist.,  Jan.,  1881,  p.  21.  Chaplain 
Evans,  of  Scammell's  regiment,  has  this  entry  in  his  "Journal:"  "Sunday,  30th  .  .  . 
Colonel  Scammel,  being  officer  of  the  day,  and  reconnoitring  the  situation  of  the 
enemy,  was  surprised  by  a  party  of  their  horse,  and  after  being  taken  prisoner  was 
inhumanly  wounded  by  them." 


124:  THE   YORKTOWN  CAMPAIGN. 

Of  course  the  eneui}7  were  not  silent  observers  of  the  investment. 
Upon  discovering  that  their  abandoned  works  at  Pigeon  Quarter  were 
occupied  by  the  allies,  they  opened  a  well-sustained  tire,  and  directed  it 
especially  at  the  American  parties  who  were  constructing  the  twro  new 
redoubts.  A  few  casualties  occurred— in  one  ease  four  men  of  the  Penn 
sylvania  line  being  killed  by  a  single  shot — but  the  work  wras  not  inter 
rupted.  On  the  2d,  according  to  Colonel  Butler,  the  enemy  fired  three 
hundred  and  fifty -one  shot  between  sunrise  and  sunset,  the  Americans 
making  no  reply,  but  digging  away  until  the  redoubts  were  finished. 
With  their  completion,  in  the  course  of  four  days,  what  had  just  been 
Cornwallis's  outer  line  of  defence  became  Washington's  first  fortified 
offensive -defensive  position,  extending  from  the  ravine  above  to  the 
head  of  Wormley  Creek  below. 

The  first  wreek  of  October  was  now  devoted  by  the  allies  to  prepara 
tions,  such  as  the  making  of  gabions,  fascines,  and  stakes,  bringing  up  of 
guns,  and  careful  surveying  for  nearer  approaches.  It  was  a  busy  inter 
val — no  man  busier  than  Washington  himself.  On  the  1st  he  was  in  the 
saddle  again,  reconnoitring  on  the  right.  "  This  afternoon,  three  o'clock," 
says  Lieutenant  Feltman,  who  was  on  picket  at  Moore's  Mill,  head  of 
Wormley  Creek,  "  his  Excellency  General  Washington,  General  Dupor- 
tail,  and  several  other  engineers  crossed  at  the  mill-dam  to  take  a  view  of 
the  enemy's  works.  His  Excellency  sent  one  of  his  aides-de-camp  for 
Captain  Smith  and  his  guard  of  fifty  men,  to  march  in  front  of  his  Excel 
lency  as  a  covering  party,  which  we  did,  and  went  under  cover  of  a  hill, 
where  we  posted  our  guard,  when  his  Excellency  General  Washington  and 
General  Duportail  with  three  men  of  our  guard  advanced  within  three 
hundred  yards  of  the  enemy's  works,  which  is  the  town  of  York."  The 
French  engineers  were  equally  active. 

The  main  delay  in  opening  the  approaches  arose  from  lack  of  trans 
portation  for  the  siege-pieces  which  were  at  the  James.  "  Much  diligence," 
writes  Washington,  "  was  used  in  debarking  and  transporting  the  stores, 
cannon,  etc.,  from  Trebell's  Landing  (distant  six  miles)  on  James  River  to 
camp;  which  for  want  of  teams  went  on  heavily."  The  teams  had  been 

The  place  of  the  colonel's  capture  was  in  the  vicinity  of  the  Confederate  "White 
Redoubt,"  in  or  near  the  Williamsburg  Road. 
Detail  of  officers  for  the  29th : 

Major-general  for  the  clay — Marquis  Lafayette. 

Colonel  "  "    —  Scammell. 

Lieutenant-colonel         "    — Van  Dyck. 

Brigade  Major  "    — Bleeker. 


THE  SIEGE  OF  YORKTOWX. 


125 


GKNKKAL  HKXKY  KXOX.   [GILBERT  STUART.] 

sent  around  by  land  from  the  Lead  of  Elk,  and  on  their  arrival  there  was 
more  despatch.  So  urgent  was  the  commander-in-chief  in  the  matter, 
that  he  sent  his  own  baggage  wagons  over,  and  in  the  morning  orders  of 
the  2d  requested  all  the  general,  Held,  and  other  officers  to  send  theirs,  as 
it  was  "of  the  utmost  importance  that  the  Heavy  Artillery  should  be 
brought  up  without  a  moment's  loss  of  time."  General  Knox,  chief  of 
artillery,  also  displayed  his  usual  energy  on  the  occasion.1 

1  Knox's  orders  to  the  artillery  brigade,  dated  "James  River,  Virginia,  29th  Septem 
ber,  1781,"  run  as  follows : 

"The  troops  are  immediately  to  disembark  at  Trebell's  Landing  and  encamp  as 
contiguous  to  the  shore  as  convenient.  The  officers  will  be  particularly  attentive  to 
prevent  the  soldiers  from  plundering  or  doing  the  inhabitants  any  other  injury.  Any 


126  THE  YORKTOWN   CAMPAIGN. 

Nor  were  the  infantry  idle.  Twelve  hundred  men  were  detailed  from 
the  American  wing,  on  the  30th  and  the  1st,  to  gather  wicker  material  in 
the  woods;  and  by  subsequent  orders  these  were  always  to  be  kept  com 
plete  in  camp,  each  regiment  furnishing  its  proportion — at  least  six  thou 
sand  stakes,  two  thousand  fascines,  six  hundred  gabions,  and  six  hundred 
saucissons.  To  prevent  confusion  during  the  siege,  clear  and  minute  reg 
ulations  were  issued,  on  the  6th,  respecting  its  conduct.  Fifty- four  in 
number,  they  provided  for  every  variety  of  service  and  precaution.  Ab 
solute  system  was  to  be  maintained  at  the  trenches  when  opened.  Gen 
eral  Elbert,  of  Georgia,  superintendent  of  the  materials,  \vas  to  take  charge 
of  all  the  sand-bags,  fascines,  gabions,  hurdles,  and  tools  at  the  points  se 
lected  by  the  engineers,  and  keep  an  accurate  account  of  them.  Fatigue 
parties  were  to  be  counted  as  they  went  in  and  out;  no  straggling; 
"greatest  silence"  during  the  digging;  covering  parties  to  sit  down, 
musket  in  hand.  General  officers  in  command  at  the  trenches  were  to 
examine  carefully  "  all  the  avenues,  places  of  arms,  and  advantageous  an 
gles,"  for  the  proper  disposition  of  troops  in  case  of  attack.  All  troops, 
whether  relieving  or  relieved,  to  march  with  drums  beating  and  colors 
flying,  though  this  was  countermanded  when  the  second  parallel  was 
opened.  Sentries  were  to  be  posted  at  proper  intervals  in  the  lines,  pro 
tected  by  sand-bags,  to  give  notice  of  the  approach  of  any  one  from  the 
town,  and  to  shout  when  the  enemy  fired  shells,  but  not  wThen  they  fired 
shot.  In  case  of  a  sortie  the  fatigue  parties  were  to  retire  briskly  to  the 
rear,  and  not  embarrass  the  troops  under  arms;  while  the  artillerists  were 
directed  to  concentrate  their  fire  upon  and  break  up  the  fronts  of  the  at 
tacking  columns.  When  the  enemy  were  repulsed  pursuit  was  not  to  be 
permitted  ;  and  so  on,  many  details. 

The  care  and  discipline,  too,  of  the  army  were  strictly  enjoined.  "  The 
health  of  the  troops,"  say  the  orders  of  the  1st,  "  is  an  object  of  such  in 
finite  importance,  that  every  possible  attention  ought  to  be  paid  to  the 
preservation  of  it."  Quartermasters  and  commissaries  were  directed  to 
furnish  straw,  good  bread,  and  one  gill  of  rum  per  man  daily.  Again,  in 
orders  of  the  29th:  "Our  ungenerous  enemy  having,  as  usual,  propagated 
the  small-pox  in  this  part  of  the  country,  the  Commander-in-chief  forbids 

soldier  who  shall  be  detected  in  such  malpractice  may  depend  on  being  punished  with 
out  being  tried  by  a  court-martial.  An  officer  with  a  party  of  twenty  men  to  be  sent 
•without  delay  to  Colledge  Creek,  to  collect  .ill  the  Batteans  and  scows  for  the  purpose 
of  landing  the  ordnance  and  stores.  An  officer  will  remain  on  each  Powder  vessel  till 
further  orders.  The  vessels  loaded  with  shott  and  shells  will  go  as  near  the  shore  as 
possible." — Order  Book,  LamVs  Reg't.,  N.  Y.  Hist.  Soc.  Collection. 


THE   SIEGE   OF  YORKTOWN.  127 

the  officers  or  soldiers  of  the  army  having  any  communication  with  the 
houses  or  inhabitants  in  the  neighborhood,  or  borrowing  any  utensils  from 
them."  For  obvious  reasons  officers  and  men  were  strictly  forbidden  "  to 
wear  red  coats."  Two  or  three  men  having  been  base  and  foolhardy 
enough  to  go  over  to  the  British,  there  came,  on  the  4th,  the  peremptory 
order  that  "every  deserter  from  the  American  troops,  after  this  public 
notice  is  given,  who  shall  be  found  within  the  enemy's  lines  at  York,  if 
the  place  falls,  will  be  instantly  hanged."  No  subsequent  desertions  are 
mentioned ;  but,  on  the  contrary,  the  highest  spirit  prevailed  in  camp, 
and  the  daily  work  was  carried  on  with  vigor  and  cheerfulness.  "Our 
troops,"  wrote  Chaplain  Evans,  on  the  5th,  "  vie  with  one  another  in  the 
performance  of  duty  and  the  love  of  danger."  The  general  sentiment 
during  these  few  days  of  preparation  was  doubtless  reflected  by  Wayne 
in  the  following  striking  letter  he  addressed  to  President  Reed,  of  the 
Pennsylvania  Executive  Council: 

"Lines  before  York, 3d  Oct.,lTSl. 

"  DEAR  Sm, — The  investiture  of  the  British  army  under  Lord  Cornwallis  was  effected 
the  29th  ultimo.  The  enemy  abandoned  their  advanced  chain  of  works  the  same  even 
ing,  leaving  two  enclosed  redoubts  almost  within  point-blank  shot  of  their  principal 
fortification;  this  was  not  only  unmilitary,  but  an  indication  of  a  confused  precipita 
tion  ;  these  works  were  immediately  possessed  by  the  allied  troops,  and  we  are  now 
in  such  forwardness  that  we  shall  soon  render  his  Lordship's  quarters  rather  disa 
greeable. 

"However,  the  reduction  of  that  army  will  require  time  and  some  expense  of  blood, 
for  we  cannot  expect  that  Lord  Cornwallis  will  tacitly  surrender  6000  combatants,  with 
out  many  a  severe  sortie — his  political  and  military  character  are  now  at  stake — he  lias 
led  the  British  king  and  ministry  into  a  deception  by  assuring  them  of  the  subjugation 
of  the  Carolinas,  and  his  manoeuvre  into  Virginia  was  a  child  of  his  own  creation, 
which  he  will  attempt  to  nourish  at  every  risk  and  consequence — he  is  now  in  full  as 
desperate  a  situation  as  his  namesake  Charles  was  at  Pultowa.  I  have  for  some  time 
viewed  him  as  a  fiery  meteor  that  displays  a  momentary  lustre,  then  falls — to  rise  no 
more. 

"That  great  officer  Genl.  Greene  first  eclipsed  his  glory — he  next  met  a  Fabius  in 
that  young  nobleman  the  Marquis  Lafayette,  and  is  now  encompassed  by  a  Washing 
ton,  which  renders  his  ruin  certain. 

"  I  was  going  chatting  on,  but  am  called  to  take  charge  of  the  covering  troops. 
Adieu  ;  and  believe  me  yours  most  sincerely,  ANTY.  WAYNE. 

"IIlS    EXCKLLBNCY  JOS.  RlCKD,  EuQU., 

Prest.  Pennsylvania. 

"  We  are  much  distressed  for  shoes,  shirts,  and  overalls — some  needles  and  thread 
would  tend  to  make  our  coats  something  longer.  A.  W."1 

1  From  Sparks'  MS.  collection,  Harvard  College  Library ;  also  in  Reed's  "  Life  of 
Reed." 


128  THE   YORKTOWN   CAMPAIGN. 

Meantime  there  was  activity  and  excitement  upon  the  Gloucester  side. 
*  Although  no  attempt  was  to  be  made  to  reduce  that  position  by  regular 
approaches,  the  necessity  of  checking  foraging  expeditions  and  shutting 
the  door  of  escape  to  the  enemy  required  the  presence  there  of  a  large 
detachment  from  Washington's  army.  The  force  which  had  been  pre 
viously  stationed  in  Gloucester  County  consisted  of  about  fifteen  hundred 
militia  under  General  Weed  on.  By  the  28th  of  September  it  had  been 
re-enforced  by  the  Duke  de  Lauzun's  Legion,  six  hundred  strong,  half 
cavalry,  half  infantry  ;  and  a  few  days  later  by  eight  hundred  marines 
from  the  French  fleet.  Brigadier-general  M.  de  Choisy  was  assigned  to 
the  command  of  the  whole.  On  the  3d,  as  Weedon's  camp  at  Dixon's 
Mill  was  too  far  from  the  enemy,  Choisy  moved  forward  to  take  a  nearer 
position.  This  led  to  a  brisk  encounter,  a  touch  of  warfare  the  besiegers 
had  seen  little  of — a  collision  of  horse — and,  as  a  success  for  their  side,  it 
put  them  in  the  best  of  humor.  It  seemed  to  hint  at  the  greater  success 
to  come. 

General  Choisy  himself,  with  the  main  body,  the  Legion  and  militia, 
marched  toward  Gloucester  by  the  Severn  Road,  while  one  company  of 
the  Legion  dragoons,  under  Dillon,  and  a  small  but  excellent  corps  of 
militia  grenadiers — mostly  old  soldiers — commanded  by  Lieutenant-colo 
nel  John  Mercer  (now  again  in  the  field),  took  the  York  River  Road. 
These  two  roads  united  in  "a  long  lane  nearly  four  miles  from  Glouces 
ter,"  which  emerged  upon  an  open  plain  on  the  right  and  a  piece  of 
woods  on  the  left.  It  was  at  this  lane  that  the  two  parts  of  Choisy 's 
force  formed  a  junction. 

On  the  same  morning,  as  it  happened,  the  British  were  also  upon  the 
Gloucester  Road.  They  had  come  out  for  "a  grand  forage" — nearly  the 
entire  garrison,  with  Lieutenant -colonel  Dundas,  commanding,  at  their 
head.  Simcoe's  Rangers  had  frequently  been  the  rounds  of  the  country, 
taking  what  they  wanted,  but  this  was  to  be  the  last  excursion  of  the 
kind.  Without  molestation  Dundas  scoured  the  fields,  loaded  down  his 
wagons  and  "bat-horses"  with  Indian  corn,  and  before  ten  o'clock  in  the 
forenoon  was  on  the  return  march  for  Gloucester.  Part  of  the  Rangers 
and  Tarleton's  Legion,  which  had  crossed  from  Yorktown  the  evening  be 
fore,  followed  leisurely  as  the  covering  body,  unsuspicious  of  Choisy's 
near  approach.  In  fact,  the  latter  entered  one  end  of  the  lane  described 
at  about  the  moment  the  enemy  were  moving  out  at  the  other.  The  par 
ties  were  now  too  close  to  escape  discovery,  and  both  immediately  pre 
pared  for  action.  The  experienced  Tarleton  quickly  formed  in  the  woods, 
some  distance  beyond  the  lane,  and  then  advanced  in  person  with  part  of 


THE  SIEGE  OF  YORKTOWN.  129 

his  Legion  cavalry  to  reconnoitre  and  skirmish.  On  the  other  hand,  the 
Duke  de  Lauzun  with  his  advance  dragoons  dashed  through  the  lane,  and 
riding  on  to  the  open  ground  beyond,  charged  upon  Tarleton  without 
halting.  This  was  just  the  opportunity  these  ambitious  leaders  had  been 
courting.  So  much  they  had  both  confessed  to  the  occupant  of  a  little 
farm-house  on  the  road  that  very  morning.  As  Lauzun  was  passing  by 
he  rode  up  to  the  woman  in  the  door-way  and  questioned  her  as  to  the 
enemy.  "  Oh,"  she  replied,  "  Colonel  Tarleton  left  this  place  only  a  few 
minutes  ago;  he  said  he  was  very  eager  to  shake  hands  with  the  French 
Duke."  "  Ha,  ha !"  laughed  Lauzun,  "  I  assure  you,  madam,  1  have  come 
on  purpose  to  gratify  him."  A  little  later  he  was  riding,  full  speed,  upon 
Tarleton.  A  skirmish  followed  at  close  quarters.  Lauzun  and  Tarleton 
very  nearly  met  hand-to-hand,  an  accident  to  the  latter  alone  preventing. 
As  he  was  moving  forward  the  horse  of  one  of  his  dragoons,  which  had 
been  struck  with  a  spear  by  a  French  trooper,  plunged  suddenly  and 
threw  both  Tarleton  and  his  horse  to  the  ground.  About  this  moment 
the  main  body  of  the  British  cavalry  appeared  upon  the  scene,  but  could 
make  no  impression  upon  Lauzun's  corps,  when  Tarleton,  escaping  from 
his  critical  situation  and  mounting  another  horse,  sounded  a  retreat  and 
re-formed  his  men  under  cover  of  Captain  Champagne's  infantry  company, 
which  had  just  come  up  to  his  assistance.  This  timely  arrival  saved  Tarle 
ton.  The  French  pushed  him  vigorously,  but  in  turn  retired  on  meeting 
the  enemy's  infantry.  Ko  further  collision  occurred  between  the  cavalry, 
for  when  Tarleton  attempted  to  renew  the  conflict,  by  advancing  again, 
he  was  met  by  Lieutenant-colonel  Mercer's  militiamen,  who  also  had  just 
arrived  upon  the  ground,  and  was  effectually  checked  by  their  steady  iire. 
"No  regular  corps,"  says  Lee,  "could  have  maintained  its  ground  more 
firmly  than  did  this  battalion  of  our  infantry."  During  this  encounter 
Lauzun  drew  up  in  Mercer's  rear,  prepared  for  another  charge,  when  the 
enemy  left  the  field,  with  the  loss  of  twelve  men  and  Lieutenant  Moir, 
of  the  infantry,  who  was  killed  close  to  the  militia,  line.  The  laurels 
of  this  little  affair  rested  with  Lauzun  and  Mercer,  who  were  congrat 
ulated  and  thanked  by  Washington  in  General  Orders  on  the  following 
day.' 

Upon  the  field  of  the  skirmish  Choisy  fixed  his  main  camp,  throwing 
out  strong  advanced  posts  within  a  mile  and  a  half  of  Gloucester,  and  re 
mained  in  this  position  until  the  close  of  the  siege,  the  enemy  sticking 
close  within  their  lines. 


1  The  details  of  this  affair  are  given  in  Lee's  "  Memoirs,"  and  by  Tarleton. 

0 


130  THE  YORKTOWN  CAMPAIGN. 

Crossing  back  again  to  the  Yorktown  front,  we  shall  find  that  Wash 
ington's  army  had  urged  on  the  siege  preparations  with  such  industry 
and  energy  that,  by  the  evening  of  the  6th,  everything  was  in  readi 
ness  for  the  opening  of  the  regular  approaches.  The  guns  were  up; 
the  materials  prepared  ;  the  enemy's  works  carefully  reconnoitred ;  the 
ground  in  their  front  minutely  surveyed.  At  once  a  novel  and  exhil 
arating  sensation  must  the  Continental  soldiers  have  felt  as  they  drew 
up  in  the  face  of  a  hitherto  dreaded  enemy  to  reduce  him  by.  purely 
scientific  methods  of  warfare.  To  anything  like  siege  operations  they 
were  nearly  all  perfect  strangers.  The  war,  for  them,  had  been  little 
more  than  years  of  patience  and  stout  endurance ;  a  war  of  hard  camp 
life,  of  marching  and  countermarching,  of  advances  and  retreats,  with 
an  occasional  battle,  and  a  war  in  which  the  continued  lack  of  means 
and  supplies  was  only  made  good  by  their  own  hopefulness  and  reso 
lution.  These  men  were  now  to  have  their  reward  in  an  unexpected 
way.  If  they  were  greatly  assisted  by  military  science  in  this  instance, 
and  a  triumph  fell  to  them  without  costly  sacrifices,  it  is  to  be  remem 
bered  that  their  sacrifices  had  already  been  made  in  the  tedious  years 
before. 

This,  now,  is  the  situation  just  before  the  combatants  look  each  other 
closely  in  the  face.  Cornwallis  has  posted  his  army  compactly  along 
the  works  around  the  town.  Guarding  the  front,  looking  up  the  river, 
is  part  of  Yorke's  brigade,  and  the  regiment  Prince  llereditaire,  with 
the  brigade  of  Guards  in  reserve.  Looking  down  the  river  are  the  bri 
gade  of  Dundas  and  the  Seventy- first.  Along  the  lines  back  of  the 
town  are  the  Anspachers;  facing  the  river,  in  detached  works,  are  the 
Thirty-third  and  the  regiment  De  Bose  ;  while  in  the  Horn -work,  the 
salient  point,  the  light  infantry  have  the  post  of  honor.  Cornwallis 
has  made  his  head -quarters  at  the  conspicuous  and  elegant  mansion  of 
Secretary  Nelson,  standing  outside  the  town  and  just  within  the  works, 
not  far  from  the  light  infantry.  General  O'Hara  takes  command  of 
the  right  of  the  defences;  Lieutenant-colonel  Abercrombie  of  the  left. 
Over  on  the  Gloucester  side  are  Simcoe's  and  Tarleton's  troopers, 
Ewald's  }7agers,  two  British  light  companies,  and  the  North  Carolina 
provincials.  Dnndas  having  been  recalled  to  Yorktown,  Simcoe  is  left 
in  command.  Then,  as  to  the  allies,  we  shall  see  an  imposing  array  of 
camps  encircling  the  besieged.  The  quarters  farthest  on  the  right  are 
those  of  General  Lincoln,  at  the  head  of  the  American  wing.  According 
to  the  maps  of  the  engineers,  his  tent  stood  close  to  the.  right  bank 
of  y^ormley  Creek,  six  or  seven  hundred  yards  below  the  mill-dam. 


THE   SIEGE   OF   YOKKTOWN.  131 

The  troops  on  his  left,  holding  the  right  of  the  entire  line,  are  Lafay 
ette's  light  infantry.  Lafayette's  marquee  is  in  their  rear,  east  of  the 
Hampton  Road.  Forming  a  second  line  behind  the  infantry  are  Gen 
eral  Nelson  and  his  militia.  Next  to  the  left,  and  on  the  second  line,  is 
Lincoln's  division  ;  and  on  its  left,  on  the  front  line,  is  Steuben's.  Some 
distance  beyond  the  Beaverdam  Creek  is  the  French  wing,  reaching  to 
the  York  above  ;  while  in  the  rear  of  the  centre  of  the  entire  line,  half 
a  mile  north-west  of  Wynne's  Mill,  and  two  and  a  half  miles  back  from 
the  Yorktown  works,  will  be  found  the  head-quarters  of  the  command- 
er-in -chief,  with  those  of  Rochambeau  a  little  to  the  east.  The  invest 
ment  is  complete  ;  the  enemy  cannot  escape ;  and  the  next  step  is  to 
tighten  the  lines  and  force  a  surrender. 

The  final  advance  upon  Yorktown  was  made  by  parallels,  and  the 
nature  of  the  ground  determined  the  direction  of  approach.  As  the  ra 
vine  in  front  of  the  upper  half  of  the  town  prevented  operations  in  that 
quarter,  the  attack  was  directed  against  the  lower  part,  or  the  enemy's 
left.  For  the  allies  this  was  a  valuable  advantage,  since  it  contracted 
their  front  and  lessened  their  labors.  The  line  for  the  first  parallel,  as 
marked  out  by  the  engineers,  and  now  to  be  openedr  extended  from  Pig 
eon  Quarter,  nearly  opposite  the  British  centre,  around  to  the  bank  of  the 
York  below.  Its  length  was  two  thousand  yards;  its  distance  from  the 
enemy  on  the  left,  six  hundred  yards;  and  on  the  right,  something  more 
than  eight  hundred  vards — this  increase  of  distance  on  the  right  being 

o  «/  o  ~ 

necessitated  by  the  position  of  the  enemy's  two  redoubts,  which  stood  in 
advance  of  their  left,  near  the  river.  The  entire  line  was  established  with 
great  care,  in  view,  as  a  French  engineer  remarks,  of  "  the  strength  and 
reputation"  of  the  besieged.  "The  forces,"  says  Rochambeau,  "which 
the  place  contained,  and  the  disposition  of  the  men  who  commanded  it, 
required  us  to  conduct  these  attacks  with  much  science  and  precaution." 

On  the  evening  of  the  6th  the  work  began.  Four  thousand  three 
hundred  men,  French  and  Americans,  paraded  at  dusk  and  marched  to 
the  designated  ground.  Major-general  Lincoln  commanded  the  American 
detachment,  which  consisted  of  six  regiments — one  from  the  right  of  each 
of  the  six  brigades — and  took  the  right  half  of  the  line.  His  brigadiers 
were  Clinton  and  Wayne.  The  French  detachment,  under  Baron  Yio- 
menil,  took  the  left.  Fifteen  hundred  of  the  troops  were  to  act  as  the 
fatigue  party  and  do  the  digging,  while  twenty-eight  hundred  lay  under 
arms  to  repel  attacks.  Colonel  Lamb,  of  the  artillery,  writing  to  Governor 


132  THE  YORKTOWN  CAMPAIGN. 

Clinton,  of  New  York,  on  the  evening  of  the  6th,  mentions  the  move 
ment,  and  adds:  "You  may  depend  on  its  being  a  night  of  business.'' 
Such  it  proved  to  be,  but  not  as  exciting  as  anticipated.  The  troops,  as 
they  came  up,  were  placed  by  the  engineers  at  proper  intervals  along  the 
projected  line,  when  they  fell  to  digging,  in  reliefs,  with  a  will,  and  in 
"the  greatest  silence."  Part  of  the  materials  —  gabions,  hurdles,  and 
what  not — had  been  previously  taken  to  the  spot  under  cover,  and,  as 
the  soil  was  sandy  and  easily  thrown  up,  progress  was  rapid.  The  night, 
too,  was  "  the  most  favorable  in  the  world  " — dark  and  cloudy,  with  a 
gentle  rain. 

Complete  success  attended  this  first  important  step.  The  enemy 
neither  heard  nor  saw  what  was  going  on  until  daybreak  revealed  the 
long  line  of  embankment  rising  ominously  in  their  front.  The  eight 
hours'  work  had  been  altogether  satisfactory,  for  the  trenches,  though  not 
completed,  were  high  enough  to  protect  the  parties  who  were  to  continue 
the  digging  the  next  day.  Washington,  who  in  his  diary  notices  all  the 
important  occurrences  of  the  siege,  says  of  this  move,  with  evident  grati 
fication:  "Before  morning  the  trenches  were  in  such  forwardness  as  to 
cover  the  men  from  the  enemy's  fire.  The  work  was  executed  with  so 
much  secrecy  and  despatch  that  the  enemy  were,  I  believe,  totally  igno 
rant  of  our  labor  till  the  light  of  the  morning  discovered  it  to  them.  Our 
loss  on  this  occasion  was  extremely  inconsiderable,  not  more  than  one  of 
ficer  (French)  and  about  20  men  killed  and  wounded,  the  officer  and  15 
of  which  were  on  our  left,  from  the  corps  of  the  Marquis  de  St.  Simon, 
who  was  betrayed  by  a  deserter  from  the  Hussars  that  went  in  and  gave 
notice  of  his  approaching  his  parallel."1  Along  the  American  line,  in 

11  Nearly  all  the  diaries  or  journals  of  the  time  refer  to  the  opening  of  the  siege 
rproper  on  the  night  of  the  6th.  Lieutenant-col.  Tilghman,  aide  to  Washington,  says: 
•"  The  6th  at  night  the  trenches  were  opened  between  5  and  600  yards  from  the  enemy's 
works  and  the  1st  parallel  run — commencing  about  the  centre  of  the  enemy's  works 
opposite  the  Secretary's  House  and  running  to  the  right  to  the  York  river.  The  par 
allel  supported  by  4  redoubts.  These  approaches  are  directed  against  the  4  works  on 
the  enemy's  left.  The  enemy  kept  up  a  pretty  brisk  fire  during  the  night ;  but  as  our 
working  parties  were  not  discovered  by  them,  their  shot  were  in  a  wrong  direction." 
Count  Fersen,  aide  to  Rochambeau :  "  At  8  o'clock  in  the  evening  we  opened  a  trench  at 
300  fathoms  from  the  works.  .  .  .  The  ground,  which  is  very  much  cut  up  by  little  ra 
vines,  greatly  facilitated  our  approach,  and  enabled  us  to  reach  our  trenches  under  cov 
er  without  being  obliged  to  cut  a  tunnel."  Gen.  Wayne :  "  Six  regiments,  i.  e.,  one  from 
the  right  of  each  brigade,  marched  at  6  o'clock  P.M.  under  the  command  of  Maj.  Gen. 
Lincoln  and  Brigadiers  Clinton  and  Wayne,  and  opened  the  1st  parallel  within  550 
yards  of  the  enemy."  Chaplain  Evans:  "The  night  was  the  most  favorable  in  the 


-  r.    -    ----:;-_-.•  . 
-  /. ' :  --  -  ::  •:  \  ---  -        Scale  ot  Yard 


PLAN    OF    THE    SIEGE    OF    YORKTOWN. 

KKFERRNOES:  A,  Works  at  Cornwnllis's  outer  position,  evacuated  niglit  of  September  20th.  —  B,  B,  First 
parallel. — C,  American  battery  on  extreme  right,  from  which  Washington  tired  the  first  shot.^ — D,  Cap 
tain  Machin's  American  battery.— E,  American  mortar  battery.— F,  French  battery  on  extreme  left,  first 
to  open  fire  October  9th.— G,  G,  French  grand  and  mortar  batteries — H,  Zigzag  to  second  parallel. — 
I,  M,  Second  parallel.— O,  N,  N,  French  batteries.— K,  Redoubt  stormed  by  Americans  night  of  October 
14th — Q,  Redoubt  stormed  by  French — P,  P,  French  and  American  batteries  attacked  by  enemy,  night 
of  October  15th.— S,  British  Fusileers'  Redoubt.- -T,  Frigate  Charon  and  transports  oil  fire.— R,  R,  R, 
French  ships  approaching  after  the  surrender. 


THE   SIEGE  OF  YORKTOWN.  135 

fact,  not  a  man  had  been  either  killed  or  wounded.  Nor  did  the  loss  re 
ferred  to  by  Washington  occur  in  this  part  of  the  field,  but  on  the  extreme 
left,  where  the  French  regiment  of  Tonraine  instituted,  at  the  same  time, 
a  false  attack  upon  the  British  Fusileers'  redoubt,  just  above  Yorktown. 
The  object  of  constructing  a  parallel  and  battery  opposite  that  work  was 
to  threaten  an  approach  from  that  quarter  and  drive  off  the  men-of-war, 
which  might  take  the  main  trenches,  as  well  as  the  camps,  in  reverse. 
M.  de  la  Loge,  of  the  artillery,  was  the  French  officer  wounded.  The 
garrison  of  the  Fusileers'  redoubt  maintained  their  post,  reports  Cornwal- 
lis,  with  "uncommon  gallantry."  From  the  French  accounts,  however, 
it  does  not  appear  that  they  made  any  serious  attempt  upon  it  beyond  a 
cannonade  from  their  battery. 

For  ten  days,  now,  until  the  closing  scene,  the  siege  was  conducted 
with  the  greatest  system  and  activity.  The  first  Continental  troops  to 
occupy  the  trenches  on  the  forenoon  of  the  7th  w7ere  Lafayette's  Light  In 
fantry.  They  marched  in  with  the  tread  of  veterans,  colors  flying,  drums 
beating,  and  planted  their  standards  on  the  parapet.1  The  enemy  saluted 
them  with  a  few  shot  without  effect.  Digging  went  on.  It  was  pro 
posed  to  make  the'  parallel  safe  against  sorties,  and  four  palisaded  re 
doubts  and  five  batteries  had  accordingly  been  marked  for  construction  at 
proper  intervals  along  the  line.  Upon  these  and  the  trenches  the  fatigue 
parties  worked  incessantly  under  the  enemy's  fire,  which  at  times  was  se 
vere;  but  casualties  were  few.  The  duty  proved  taxing,  and  many  sol 
diers  were  taken  down  with  the  ague,  French  especially.  In  the  enemy's 
camp  over  one  thousand  were  reported  on  the  sick-list.  They  wTere  dig 
ging  there  defensively  quite  as  hard  as  the  allies  offensively. 

On  the  7th  and  8th  much  was  accomplished.2  Batteries  approached 
completion;  and  the  allies  were  surprised  at  the  little  interruption  from 
the  opposite  side.  "  The  enemy,"  says  Colonel  Butler,  ''seem  embarrassed, 

world.  Providence  seemed  very  evidently  to  have  drawn  the  curtains  of  darkness 
around  us  on  purpose  to  conceal  us  from  our  enemies  until  the  time  of  our  greatest 
danger  had  passed  by.  Not  a  man  killed  or  wounded  in  the  American  Camp,  and  but 
a  few  in  the  Camp  of  the  French."  See  Deuxponta,  Butler,  Pickering,  Thaclier,  Tarleton, 
etc.,  for  further  details. 

1  Diary  in  "Martin's  Gazetteer  of  Virginia,"  title,  Yorktown. 

3  "The  night  of  the  7th  four  new  works  were  commenced  advanced  of  the  1st  par 
allel,  scarce  any  annoyance  from  the  enemy.  1  man  of  ours  killed  by  the  firing  of  one 
patrole  upon  the  other  and  1  man  had  his  foot  shot  off — 2  men  wounded  in  the  French 
trenches. — 8th.  Still  employed  completing  the  advanced  redoubts — fire  of  the  enemy 
very  slack — this  night  1  American  killed — 1  wounded,  1  French  killed — 4  badly 
wounded." —  Tilyhmnn. 


136 


THE   YORKTOWN  CAMPAIGN. 


confused,  and  indeterminate ;  their  fire  seems  feeble  to  what  might  be  ex 
pected,  their  works,  too,  are  not  formed  on  any  regular  plan,  but  thrown 
up  in  a  hurry  occasionally,  and  although  we  have  not  as  yet  fired  one  shot 
from  a  piece  of  artillery,  they  are  as  cautious  as  if  the  heaviest  tire  was 
kept  up."  The  truth  was  that  Corn  wall  is,  little  dreaming  that  he  should 
be  compelled  to  stand  a  siege,  was  unprepared  for  it.  On  the  8th,  to  fol 
low  details  a  little  farther,  Steuben's  division  relieved  Lafayette's  at  the 
trenches,  and  on  the  9th  Lincoln  relieved  Steuben.  This  order  was  pre 
served  during  the  siege.  In  the  French  wing,  M.  de  Chastellux,  the  Mar 
quis  St.  Simon,  Viscount  Yiomenil,  and  the  Baron  Viomenil  succeeded 
each  other  at  the  trenches  as  "  Marechal  de  Camp."  Their  detachments 
were  made  up  of  "  bataillons,"  "  auxilliaires,"  and  "  travailleurs  de  unit."1 

As  Steuben  was  the  only  general  officer  in  the  American  wing  who 
had  been  present  at  a  siege  before,  his  word  was  doubtless  taken  as  law 
on  many  points.  He  seems  to  have  been  the  only  division  commander 
who  issued  orders  to  the  parties  on  the  lines.  On  the  8th,  for  example,  he 
gave  them  some  practical  advice  as  to  defending  a  parallel.  "  The  general 
of  the  trenches,"  he  said,  "enjoins  it  in  the  strictest  manner,  on  the 
officers,  to  remain  constantly  with  their  respective  commands.  The  of 
ficers  commanding  platoons  are,  particularly  during  the  night,  to  keep 
their  men  together,  with  their  arms  in  their  hands.  In  case  the  enemy 
should  sally,  the  whole  of  the  troops  are  to  form  eight  paces  in  the  rear 
of  the  trench ;  and  as  the  enemy  come  into  the  trench,  the  respective  pla 
toons  will  rush  on  them  with  the  bayonet ;  when  they  are  repulsed  and 
retiring,  then,  and  not  before,  the  troops  will  occupy  the  banquette,  and 
fire  at  them  in  their  retreat.  Experience  has  proved  the  efficacy  of  this 
method  of  defence,  and  from  the  General's  knowledge  of  the  troops  he  has 
the  honor  to  command,  he  has  not  the  least  doubt  but  that  the  enemy  will 
pay  dearly  for  their  temerity,  should  they  think  proper  to  sally.  .  .  ." 

Knox,  too,  was  in  his  element.  This  was  the  opportunity  for  his  guns 
and  gunners,  and  under  his  active  direction  they  fully  improved  it.  The 


1  Washington's  and  Rocliambeau's  daily  details  ran  in  this  form — those  of  the  8th, 
for  instance : 


'•  For  the  trenches  to-morrow  : 

;  MAJOK-GENEUAL  LINCOLN,  GENERAL  CLIN 
TON, — Major-general  Lincoln's  division 
will  mount  iu  the  trenches  to-morrow." 


"Marechal  de  Camp:  le  Marquis  de  Saint 
Simon. 

"Brigadier:  de  Custine;  Gatinais:  deux 
bataillons ;  Royal  Deux-Ponts :  deux  ba 
taillons;  Auxiliaires:  les  grenadiers  de 
Soissonnais  et  de  Saintongc ;  Travail 
leurs  de  iiuit :  huit  cents  homines." 


THE   SIEGE   OF   YOKKTOWN. 


13' 


artillery  was  already  regarded  as  the  most  efficient  arm  in  the  Revolution 
ary  service,  and  now  it  was  to  add  to  its  high  reputation.  Not  only  was 
Knox  himself  an  accomplished  chief  of  artillery,  but  many  of  his  officers 
would  have  done  honor  to  the  profession  in  any  service.  Such,  among 
others,  were  Colonel  Lamb,  Lieu 
tenant-colonels  Stevens  and  Car- 
rington,  and  Major  Bauman,  who 
took  turns  as  superintendents  of 
the  batteries  and  directors  of  the 
park.  We  get  a  glimpse  of  the 
strictness  and  precision  required 
of  the  officers  in  the  performance 
of  their  duties  from  Knox's  or 
ders  of  the  8th,  as  follows : 

"  A  Field  officer  of  artillery  will  be 
appointed  every  day  to  command  in  the 
Trenches,  to  be  relieved  every  twenty- 
four  hours.  He  will  pointedly  attend 
that  the  firing  is  well  directed  accord 
ing  to  the  object,  and  that  the  utmost 
coolness  and  Regularity  is  observed. 
Upon  every  occasion  where  it  shall  be 
practicable,  the  Recochet  firing  of  shott 

and    shells   must    be    practiced.     This  BARON  STEUBEN. 

mode   has  a  vast   superiority  over  all 

others,  and  is  much  more  oeconomical.  The  officers  of  Artillery  in  the  Batteries  are  to 
level  every  piece  themselves.  As  soon  as  the  Field  officer  of  the  Trenches  shall  be 
relieved,  he  will  make  a  written  report  of  the  occurrences  which  have  happened  dur 
ing  his  Command,  specifying  the  number  and  species  of  shott  and  shells  expended 
with  the  apparent  effect  on  the  enemy's  Works,  and  a  Return  of  the  killed  and 
wounded.  .  .  ."* 

In  this  branch  of  the  service  at  the  siege  the  Americans  were  in  no 
way  inferior  to  the  French,  and  observably  superior  to  the  British. 

Industrious  digging  on   the  part  of  the  allies  continued  night  and 

1  Artillery  Brigade  orders,  "  MS.  Orderly  Book,"  N.  Y.  Hist.  Soc.  Papers. 

In  camp  and  guard  duties  the  artillery  corps  was  assisted  as  indicated  in  the  fol 
lowing  general  order  of  the  6th  :  "  Lt.  Coll  Dabney's  Rcgt  [Va.]  the  Delaware  Detach' 
now  doing  duty  with  the  Third  Maryld  and  one  hundred  &  sixty  men  which  his 
Excellency  Gen1  Nelson  is  requested  to  have  selected  from  the  militia  for  the  Purpose, 
are  to  assist  the  Artillery  During  the  present  operations — they  will  encamp  in  the  park, 
and  take  their  orders  from  Gen1  Knox." 


138  THE  YORKTOWN  CAMPAIGN. 

day,  until  by  the  afternoon  of  the  9th  a  sufficient  number  of  batteries 
had  been  erected  to  open  the  bombardment  of  Yorktown.  The  first 
to  fire,  at  three  o'clock,  was  the  French  battery  on  the  extreme  left, 
opposite  the  British  Fusileers'  redoubt.  It  had  been  erected  by  the 
regiment  Touraine,  and  mounted  four  twelve -pounders  and  six  howit 
zers  and  mortars.  Its  fire  compelled  the  frigate  Guadaloupe  to  retire 
to  the  Gloucester  shore.1  At  five  o'clock  the  American  battery  on  the 
extreme  right,  on  the  river  bank  below,  which  appears  to  have  been 
under  the  charge  of  Captain  Ferguson,  of  the  Fourth  Artillery,  follow 
ed  with  discharges  from  six  eighteen  and  twenty-four  pounders,  four 
mortars,  and  two  howitzers,  and  the  serious  work  of  the  siege  had  begun. 
The  journal  of  more  than  one  American  officer  mentions  the  fact 
that  the  first  shot  from  the  American  battery  was  tired  by  Washington 
himself.2  Colonel  Cortlandt  remembered  that  he  distinctly  heard  it 
crash  into  some  houses  in  Yorktown.  If  Captain  Samuel  Graham,  of 
the  Seventy -sixth  Regiment,  whose  station  was  directly  in  the  line  of 
fire,  was  not  mistaken  as  to  the  particular  discharge  he  refers  to  in  his 
"Memoirs,"  this  first  shot  was  singularly  fatal.  A  party  of  officers 
from  the  Seventy-sixth  were  then  at  dinner  in  a  neighboring  building. 
The  British  Commissary-general  Perkins  was  with  them.  One  of  the 
officers  was  an  old  Scotch  lieutenant,  who,  when  the  allies  first  invested 
the  place,  was  heard  to  soliloquize  as  he  buckled  on  his  sword:  "Come 
on,  Maister  Washington.  I'm  unco  glad  to  see  you.  I've  been  offered 
money  for  my  commission,  but  I  could  na  think  of  gangin'  home  with 
out  a  sight  of  you.  Come  on."  Poor  fellow  !  Washington  fell  upon 
him  in  a  way  that  was  quite  unexpected,  for  that  first  ball  struck  and 
wounded  him  terribly.  It  also  wounded  the  quarter -master  and  adju 
tant  of  the  Seventy-sixth,  and  killed  the  commissary-general.  Another 
marked  casualty  of  the  siege  was  the  death  of  Major  Cochrane,  who 
arrived  at  Yorktown  on  the  10th,  with  despatches  from  Clinton  to 
Cornwallis.  Two  days  after,  in  company  with  the  British  general,  he 
went  to  the  lines,  and  fired  one  of  the  guns  himself;  but  as  he  looked 
over  the  parapet  to  see  its  effect  en  ricochet,  a  ball  from  the  American 
works  carried  away  his  head,  narrowly  missing  Cornwallis,  who  was 
standing  bv  his  side.3 

o        «/ 


1  Note  on  Captain  Fagc's  map  of  Yorktown,  published  1782,  London. 

2  Colonel  Butler,  of  Penn.,  states  positively  that  Washington  fired  the  first  shot. 

3  Statement  made  by  Captain  Mure  in  letter  published  in  appendix  to  vol.  vii.  ol 
Lord  Mahon's  "History  of  England." 


THE   SIEGE   OF  YORKTOWN.  139 

One  of  the  principal  objects  fired  at  by  the  besiegers  was  Secretary 
Nelson's  house,  where  Cormvallis  was  quartered,  and  it  soon  became 
untenable.  His  Lordship  withdrew  from  it  on  the  10th,  as  did  Mr.  Nel 
son,  who  received  permission  to  pass  into  the  American  lines.  "By 
report  of  Mr.  Secretary  Nelson,"  says  Colonel  Tilghman,  the  American 
shells  did  "  a  good  deal  of  damage."  Fifteen  years  after  the  war  the 
mansion  still  stood  unrepaired,  "  pierced  in  every  direction  with  can 
non-shot  and  bomb-shells." ' 

On  the  10th  two  new  batteries  opened — the  "  Grand  French  Battery," 
on  the  left  of  the  parallel,  mounting  ten  eighteen  and  twenty-four  pound 
ers  and  six  mortars,  and  the  American  battery  of  four  eighteen-pounders 
and  two  mortars,  under  command,  as  Tilghman  says,  of  Captain  Thomas 
Machin,  of  the  Second  Artillery.  On  this  date  Lafayette  was  general 
officer  of  the  day,  and  he  invited  Governor  Nelson  to  be  present  at  the 
opening  of  the  lire  from  Machin's  guns,  not  only  as  a  compliment,  but  be 
cause  of  his  accurate  knowledge  of  localities  in  Yorktown.  "To  what 
particular  spot,"  he  asked,  "  would  your  Excellency  direct  that  we  should 
point  the  cannon?"  "There,"  replied  Nelson,  "to  that  house.  It  is 

1  The  British  maps  of  the  siege  distinctly  mark  the  Secretary's  house  as  the  head 
quarters.  The  fact  is  given  also  in  Chastellux's  "Travels"  and  those  of  Rochefoucauld 
and  Weld,  in  1795-'9G,  The  latter,  an  Englishman,  says:  "  York  is  remarkable  for  hav 
ing  been  the  place  where  Lord  Cornwallis  surrendered  his  army  to  the  combined  forces 
of  the  Americans  and  French.  A  few  of  the  redoubts,  which  were  erected  by  each 
army, are  still  remaining,  but  the  principal  fortifications  are  almost  quite  obliterated; 
the  plough  has  passed  over  some  of  them,  and  groves  of  pine  trees  sprung  up  about 
others,  though,  during  the  siege,  every  tree  near  the  town  was  destroyed.  The  first 
and  second  parallels  can  just  be  traced  when  pointed  out  by  a  person  acquainted  with 
them  in  a  more  perfect  state.  In  the  town  the  houses  bear  evident  marks  of  the 
siege,  and  the  inhabitants  will  not,  on  any  account,  suffer  the  holes  perforated  by  the 
cannon-balls  to  be  repaired  on  the  outside.  There  is  one  house  in  particular,  which 
stands  in  the  skirt  of  the  town,  that  is  in  a  most  shattered  condition.  It  was  the 
habitation  of  a  Mr.  Neilson,  a  Secretary  under  the  regal  government,  and  was  made 
the  head-quarters  of  Lord  Cornwallis  when  he  first  came  to  the  town;  but  it  stood 
so  much  exposed,  and  afforded  so  good  a  mark  to  the  enemy,  that  he  was  soon  forced 
to  quit  it.  ...  The  walls  and  roof  are  pierced  in  innumerable  places,  and  at  one  cor 
ner  a  large  piece  of  the  wall  is  torn  away."  This  mansion  is  not  now  standing. 

In  what  house  Cornwallis  took  up  his  quarters  next  does  not  appear  —  possibly 
Governor  Nelson's,  in  the  town.  More  likely  he  pitched  his  tent  under  the  bank, 
which  gave  rise  at  the  time  to  the  story  that  he  made  a  cave  his  head-quarters.  Pick 
ering  says,  on  the  llth  :  "  Yesterday  Secretary  Nelson  came  out  of  York.  He  was  put 
under  no  restraint  by  the  enemy.  He  says  our  shells  had  great  effect.  The  enemy 
retired  for  shelter  under  the  bank  of  the  river,  but  the  shells  annoyed  them  there." 


140  THE   YORKTOWN   CAMPAIGN. 

mine,  and,  now  that  the  Secretary's  is  nearly  knocked  to  pieces,  is  the 
best  one  in  the  town.  There  you  will  be  almost  certain  to  find  Lord 
Cornwallis  and  the  British  head-quarters.  Fire  upon  it,  my  dear  marquis, 
and  never  spare  a  particle  of  my  property  so  long  as  it  affords  a  comfort 
or  a  shelter  to  the  enemies  of  my  country."1  Nelson's  patriotism  was 
conspicuous  all  through  this  campaign.  How  earnestly  and  actively  he 
was  engaged  in  urging  the  public  officers  throughout  the  State  to  forward 
everything  they  could  collect  in  the  shape  of  provisions  for  the  allied 
army  appears  from  his  letters  published  in  1874  by  the  Virginia  Histori 
cal  Society.  Although  serving  but  a  brief  term,  he  proved  himself  a 
"War  Governor,"  like  George  Clinton,  of  New  York,  and  Trumbull,  of 
Connecticut,  but,  unfortunately,  failed,  in  the  midst  of  private  claims 
brought  against  him  for  necessary  impressments  made  in  the  public  ser 
vice,  to  receive  the  same  hearty  and  grateful  appreciation  upon  his  re 
tirement. 

Nor  could  the  British  shipping  in  the  river  remain  at  the  usual  anch 
orage  off  the  town.  A  number  of  vessels  had  been  scuttled  and  sunk  by 
order  of  the  British  commander,  while  the  Charon  was  set  on  fire  on  the 
night  of  the  10th  by  hot  shot  from  the  French  battery  on  the  extreme 
left,  and  destroyed.  An  officer  who  witnessed  the  sight  writes :  "  The 
Charon  was  on  fire  from  the  water's  edge  to  her  truck  at  the  same  time. 
I  never  saw  anything  so  magnificent."  T\vo  transports  close  to  her  were 
also  burned. 

By  the  llth  fifty-two  pieces  were  playing  from  the  allied  batteries 
upon  the  enemjT,  and  had  succeeded  in  nearly  silencing  their  fire.  At 
noon  of  this  day  Cornwallis  wrote  to  Clinton:  "We  have  lost  about  sev 
enty  men,  and  many  of  our  works  are  considerabty  damaged.  With  such 
works,  on  disadvantageous  ground,  against  so  powerful  an  attack  we  can 
not  hope  to  make  a  very  long  resistance."  In  a  postscript  at  5  P.M.  he 
adds:  "Since  my  last  letter  was  written  we  have  lost  thirty  men." 

But  vigorously  as  the  siege  was  prosecuted,  the  turning-point  and 
the  end  came  even  sooner  than  expected.  The  incident  which  largely 
determined  matters  occurred  in  connection  with  the  construction  by  the 
allies  of  a  second  parallel  from  three  to  five  hundred  yards  in  advance  of 
the  first,  thus  bringing  both  wings  within  storming  distance  of  the  British 
lines.  This  parallel  was  opened  on  the  night  of  the  llth  by  detachments 
from  the  two  armies,  Stenben's  division  furnishing  the  American  detail. 

1  "  Recollections  and  Private  Memoirs  of  Washington,"  Custis,  p.  336. 


THE   SIEGE   OF   YORKTOWN. 

The  parties  moved  out  at  dusk,  every  second  man  carrying  a  fascine  and 
shovel,  and  every  man  "a  shovel,  spade,  or  grubbing  hoe,"  and  by  morn 
ing  they  had  thrown  up  an  intrenchment  seven  hundred  and  fifty  yards 
long,  three  and  a  half  feet  deep,  and  seven  feet  wide.1  It  was  an  exciting 
and  busy  night,  with  its  alarms  of  sorties  by  the  enemy,  arid  the  whizzing 
of  shot  and  shell  from  the  first  parallel  over  the  heads  of  the  diggers. 
Two  men  were  killed  by  the  premature  bursting  of  French  shells  in  this 
cross-fire.  Both  Steuben  and  Wayne  were  exposed  as  well  as  their  men, 
and  the  story  is  told  that  once,  when  a  shell  fell  near  them,  Steuben  threw 
himself  into  the  trench,  and  Wayne  followed,  stumbling  over  him.  "Ah 
ha,  Wayne,"  laughed  Steuben,  "you  cover  your  general's  retreat  in  the 
best  manner  possible."  This  was  coming  to  close  quarters,  but  the  in 
creasingly  effective  fire  from  the  French  and  American  batteries  con 
tinued  to  keep  the  British  gunners  very  quiet,  and  work  on  the  second 
line  went  on  two  days  longer  without  many  casualties.  It  had  been  ob- 

1  Baron  Stcubcn's  Order  in  the  Trendies,  October  llth,  1781 :  "The  Soldiers  not  to 
be  allowed  to  lay  down  in  the  night,  but  remain  as  in  the  day  time  with  their  arms  in 
their  hands.  Officers  to  remain  at  their  respective  posts.  No  Fashiues  to  be  untied  nor 
made  use  of  in  any  manner  whatsoever  but  for  the  construction  of  the  works." — Col. 
Febiger's  MS. 

In  his  congratulatory  orders  to  his  division,  October  21st,  Steuben  tenders  the  offi 
cers  and  men  his  "best  thanks  for  the  good  conduct  shown  in  opening  the  second  par 
allel,  which  he  considers  as  the  most  important  part  of  the  siege.  He  takes  pleasure  in 
assuring  them  it  was  performed  with  a  degree  of  bravery  and  despatch  that  exceeded 
his  most  sanguine  expectations." 

From  the  "Journal"  in  Martin's  Gazetteer:  "llth.  —  In  the  evening,  the  second 
parallel  opened  by  B.  Steuben's  division.  This  parallel  was  carried  on  with  amazing 
rapidity,  at  360  yards'  distance  from  the  enemy's  batteries,  under  a  very  heavy  fire  of 
the  enemy's  shot  and  shells  going  over  our  heads  in  a  continual  blaze  the  whole  night. 
The  sight  was  beautifully  tremendous."  .  .  . 

From  Deuxponts'  "Campaigns,"  describing  the  part  taken  by  the  French  on  this  oc 
casion:  "On  the  llth  of  October,  the  regiments  of  Gatenois  and  of  Royal  Deuxponts 
relieved  the  trenches,  and  the  same  night  we  constructed  a  second  parallel  within  short 
musket  range  of  the  town,  to  be  ready  against  a  vigorous  sortie.  Several  companies 
were  ordered  in  consequence  as  auxiliary  grenadiers  and  chasseurs,  and  the  Chevalier 
de  Chastellux,  general  officer  of  the  trenches,  made  such  disposition  of  the  troops  as  to 
receive  the  enemy  in  the  most  advantageous  manner.  At  eight  o'clock  in  the  evening 
we  began  the  work;  at  ten  o'clock  we  heard  a  score  of  musket -shots;  everybody 
thought  that  it  was  the  beginning  of  an  attack,  but  it  was  only  an  English  patrol. 
There  were  several  small  volleys  of  this  kind  during  the  night,  and  it  is  to  this  all  the 
outside  attempts  of  the  enemy  are  confined.  Nevertheless,  they  fire  many  cannon, 
bombs,  and  howitzers ;  but  the  fire  of  our  artillery  preserves  its  superiority,  and  the  fire 
of  the  enemy  has  little  effect." 


142  THE  YORKTOWN  CAMPAIGN. 

served,  however,  that  the  new  parallel  would  not  form  a  sufficiently  coin- 
pact  investment  unless  it  was  extended  on  the  right  to  the  river-bank. 
But  here  there  was  a  serious  obstacle,  for  the  ground  near  the  river  was 
occupied  by  the  two  outer  British  redoubts,  Numbers  9  and  10,  which 
must  first  be  taken.  The  resolution  to  storm  them  was  accordingly  form 
ed  the  moment  the  necessity  was  obvious,  and  the  capture  of  the  two 
forts  stands  out  as  the  incident  which  more  than  any  other  marked  the 
energy  of  the  siege,  and  which,  upon  his  own  admission,  hastened  the  sur 
render  of  Cornwallis.  We  have  no  "great"  assault  here,  no  storming  of 
the  Malakoff  or  Redan  ;  but  the  work  was  done  so  well,  was  so  highly 
praised  at  the  time,  and  was,  moreover,  the  last  piece  of  fighting  on  the 
part  of  any  of  Washington's  troops,  that  some  of  its  details  may  be 
recalled. 

The  assault  was  assigned  to  the  choice  corps  of  the  allied  army — the 
work  upon  the  right,  on  the  high  bank  of  the  York,  to  the  American 
light  infantry  ;  the  other,  nearly  a  quarter  of  a  mile  to  the  left,  to  the 
French  chasseurs  and  grenadiers.  The  martial  pride  of  these  soldiers, 
excited  by  what  amounted  to  a  friendly  challenge  to  do  their  best,  carried 
them  along  to  complete  success,  both  redoubts  being  gallantly  taken  at 
nearly  the  same  moment. 

The  time  selected  was  the  night  of  the  14th.  For  the  storming  party 
on  the  side  of  the  French  the  grenadiers  and  chasseurs  of  the  regiments 
Gatenois  and  Royal  Deuxponts,  four  hundred  strong,  were  detailed.  The 
work  they  were  to  take  was  the  bastion  redoubt  "  Number  9,"  standing 
across  the  road  running  from  Yorktown  to  the  Moore  house  below,  and 
was  held  by  Lieutenant-colonel  McPherson  and  about  one  hundred  and 
twenty  British  and  Hessians.  Colonel  William  Deuxponts,  a  brave,  en 
thusiastic  spirit  in  the  French  army,  commanded  the  detachment,  with 
Lieutenant-colonel  Baron  de  1'Estrade,  an  officer  of  forty  years'  service, 
as  second.  As  the  detachment  moved  out  of  the  lines  into  position  eve 
rybody  wished  Deuxponts  success  and  glory,  and  expressed  regret  at  not 
being  able  to  go  with  him.  "  That  moment,"  he  writes  in  his  journal, 
"  seemed  to  me  very  sweet,  and  was  very  elevating  to  the  soul  and  ani 
mating  to  the  courage.  My  brother,  especially,  my  brother — and  I  shall 
never  forget  it — gave  me  marks  of  a  tenderness  which  penetrated  to  the 
bottom  of  my  heart."  At  the  given  signal — the  firing  of  six  shells  in 
rapid  succession — about  eight  o'clock,  just  after  dusk,  the  force  advanced 
in  columns  by  platoons,  the  first  fifty  chasseurs  carrying  fascines,  to  fill 
the  ditch,  and  eight  carrying  ladders.  Two  trusty  sergeants — who,  with 
Deuxponts  and  L'Estrade,  had  previously  reconnoitred  the  ground  with 


THE   SIEGE   OF  YORKTOWN.  143 

great  care — led  the  way.  The  second  battalion  of  the  regiment  Gatenois, 
under  Count  de  Rostaing,  remained  in  reserve,  with  Baron  de  Yiomenil 
commanding  the  whole.  Deuxponts  moved  on  silently,  when,  at  a  hun 
dred  and  twenty  paces  from  the  redoubt,  a  Hessian  sentinel  discovered 
them.  "Wer  da?" — "Who  goes  there?"  he  shouted.  No  answer  com 
ing,  the  enemy  instantly  opened  lire.  Unluckily,  the  strong  abatis,  twen 
ty-five  paces  in  front  of  the  fort,  stopped  the  French  several  minutes, 
and  there  they  lost  men  while  the  pioneers  cut  away  a  passage;  but,  the 
obstructions  once  cleared,  the  chasseurs  dashed  on,  and  began  mounting 
the  parapet.  The  first  to  reach  the  top  was  the  Chevalier  de  Lameth  ; 
but,  receiving  a  point-blank  discharge  from  the  Hessian  infantry,  he  fell 
back  shot  through  both  knees.  L'Estrade  while  climbing  was  tumbled 
into  the  ditch  by  a  soldier  falling  from  above  him.  Rising  badly  bruised, 
he  scolded  the  man  roundly  for  making  such  bungling  work  of  it.  Deux- 
ponts  also  fell,  when  young  Lieutenant  de  Sillegue,  of  the  chasseurs,  pull 
ed  him  up  the  parapet,  to  be  fatally  wounded  in  doing  so.  Finding  the 
French  actually  on  the  edge  of  their  redoubt,  the  enemy  charged  upon 
them ;  but  Deuxponts  ordered  his  men  to  fire  and  countercharge,  and  the 
work  was  theirs.  The  Hessians  threw  down  their  arms ;  the  French 
raised  the  shout  of  "  Vive  le  roi !"  They  had  carried  the  redoubt  in  less 
than  half  an  hour,  with  the  loss  of  fifteen  killed  and  seventy-seven  wound- 
edj  the  enemy  losing  eighteen  killed  and  fifty  prisoners.  For  his  conduct 
on  this  occasion  Deuxponts  received  the  title  of  Chevalier  in  the  Military 
Order  of  St.  Louis  as  a  special  distinction.  In  his  journal  he  has  this  ap 
preciative  word  for  his  comrades:  "  With  troops  so  good,  so  brave,  and  so 
disciplined  as  those  I  have  the  honor  to  lead  against  the'  enemy,  one  can 
undertake  anything,  and  be  sure  of  succeeding,  if  the  impossibility  of  it 
has  not  been  proved.  I  owe  them  the  happiest  day  of  my  life,  and  cer 
tainly  the  recollection  of  it  will  never  be  effaced  from  my  mind."  The 
grenadiers  of  the  regiment  Gatenois  behaved  so  well  that  Rochambeau,  at 
their  entreaty,  before  the  assault,  petitioned  the  King  to  restore  their  old 
honored  name  and  motto  of  "Auvergne  sans  tache."  "Good  for  Royal 
Auvergne!"  wrote  the  King  upon  the  petition,  when  he  read  of  their 
exploit. 

Not  less  brilliant  was  the  success  of  the  Americans  at  the  other  re 
doubt.  The  praise  bestowed  by  Lafayette  upon  his  light  infantry,  that 
they  were  equal  to  the  best  troops  in  the  world,  proved  to  be  well- 
grounded.  Viomenil  added  to  the  compliment  when  he  referred  to  them 
in  his  official  report  as  behaving  on  this  occasion  "like  grenadiers  accus 
tomed  to  difficult  things."  These  light  infantry  troops,  it  may  be  re- 


THE   YORKTOWN   CAMPAIGN, 

peated,  were  in  truth,  both  officers  and  men,  tried  veterans  of  the  war. 
half  of  whom,  in  addition  to  previous  service,  had  just  completed  the  cam 
paign  in  Virginia' under  Lafayette.  The  battalions  selected  for  the  pres 
ent  assault  were  Gimat's,  Alexander  Hamilton's,  and  half  of  Laurens's — 
the  whole  under  the  immediate  command  of  Hamilton,  whose  own  corps 
was  led  by  his  major,  Nicholas  Fish,  of  New  York.  As  in  the  case  of  the 
French,  the  detachment  was  four  hundred  strong.  The  command  at  first 


PLAN  Of  THE 

STORMING 

OF  THE 

BRITISH  REDOUBTS 

Nos.  9  and  10 
Xight  Oct.  Hth  1781 


was  a  matter  in  dispute.  Lafayette,  as  chief  of  the  Light  Division,  had 
intended  the  honor  for  Gimat,  lately  his  aide,  who  had  entered  the  Amer 
ican  service  in  1777,  and  served  two  campaigns  with  the  light  infantry, 
with  the  brevet  rank  of  lieutenant-colonel.  On  that  date,  October  14th, 
Hamilton  was  field-officer  of  the  day.  At  once  he  protested  against  Gimat's 
appointment  for  command  during  his  own  tour  of  duty.  Being  informed 
by  Lafayette  that  the  assignment  had  already  been  made,  and  approved 
at  head-quarters,  he  wrote  a  spirited  letter  to  Washington,  who,  upon  in- 


THE   SIEGE   OF   YORKTOWN,  145 

quiring  into  the  claim,  decided  in  favor  of  Hamilton,  much  to  the  latter' .s 
gratification.1 

Gimat's  battalion,  however,  as  the  oldest  and  one  of  the  three  that  had 
been  in  Virginia  from  the  first,  retained  the  post  of  honor  in  the  van  of 
the  assaulting  party.  It  was  composed  of  companies,  it  will  be  recalled, 
drawn  mainly  from  the  Connecticut  line,  and  was  the  regiment  which  pro 
tected  Wayne's  right  flank  at  the  action  of  Green  Spring  Farm.  John 
Palsgrave  Wyllys,  of  Hartford,  was  its  major,  and  its  original  captains 
were  Barker,  Douglass,  Heart,  St.  John,  and  Welles,  from  Connecticut,2 
Hunt,  and  another  from  Massachusetts,  and  Olney,  from  Rhode  Island. 
Hamilton's  battalion  was  composed  of  two  New  York  and  two  Connecti 
cut  companies;  and  of  Laurens's  two  companies,  which  were  part  of  Scam- 
mell's  old  corps,  one  wTas  from  Connecticut,  under  Captain  Stephen  Betts, 
of  Stamford,  and  the  other,  under  Captain  Ebenezer  Williams,  of  Massa 
chusetts.  With  the  detachment  went  also  a  party  of  sappers  and  miners, 
under  Captains  Gilliland  and  Kirkpatrick ;  while  for  a  reserve  corps 
Lafayette  drew  up  the  remainder  of  the  Light  Division,  under  Generals 
Muhlenberg  and  Hazen,  and  in  their  rear  Wayne  posted  two  Pennsylva 
nia  battalions. 

The  work  to  be  stormed  was  a  square  redoubt,  ".Number  10,"  some- 
\vhat  smaller  than  the  one  captured  by  the  French,  standing  within  twen 
ty  feet  of  the  river-bank,  and  held  by  the  British  Major  Campbell  and 
about  seventy  men.  It  was  upon  the  site  of  this  work — the  "Rock  Re 
doubt,"  as  it  was  afterward  called — that  the  triumphal  arch  was  erected  in 
honor  of  Lafayette,  upon  the  occasion  of  his  visit  to  Yorktown  in  1824, 
and  under  which  he  paid  a  feeling  tribute  to  the  worth  and  valor  of  his 
"dear  light  infantry"  of  1781. 

At  the  given  signal — the  six  shells — Hamilton  and  .his  column  ad 
vanced  rapidly,  with  unloaded  muskets,  Laurens  having  first  been  de 
tached  to  take  the  redoubt  in  reverse,  and  prevent  the  escape  of  the  garri 
son.  Under  the  almost  perfect  discipline  of  these  troops  every  order  was 
executed  with  precision.  As  they  neared  the  work  they  rushed  to  the 
charge  without  waiting  for  the  sappers  to  remove  the  abatis,  and  thereby 
saved  themselves  the  delay  and  loss  which  befell  the  French.  Climbing 


1  Colonel  Harry  Lee,  who  was  at  the  siege,  apparently  as  bearer  of  despatches  from 
General  Greene,  states  that  he  had  this  incident  from  Hamilton  himself. — Memoirs,  vol. 
ii.,  p.  342,  note. 

3  Revolutionary  MS.,  State  Library,  Hartford.  The  composition  of  the  rest  of  the 
command  is  ascertained  from  Order  Books  and  Hamilton's  Report. 

10 


146  THE   YORKTOWN   CAMPAIGN. 

over  or  breaking  through  the  obstructions,  they  reached  the  ditch,  envel 
oped  the  work,  and  scaling  the  parapet,  made  the  capture  within  ten 
minutes  after  the  start.  The  forlorn  hope  of  twenty  men,  under  Lieuten 
ant  John  Mansfield,  of  the  Fourth  Connecticut,  led  the  column  without 
wavering.  Mansfield,  who  entered  the  work  among  the  first,  receiving  a 
bayonet  wound,  was  reported  by  Hamilton  as  deserving  particular  com 
mendation  for  his  "  coolness,  firmness,  and  punctuality."  '  Stephen  Olney, 
of  the  Rhode  Island  regiment,  perhaps  the  oldest  captain  in  the  service, 
marched  with  his  company  at  the  head  of  the  detachment ;  but  in  attempt 
ing  to  climb  into  the  fort  two  of  the  en 
emy  struck  at  him  with  their  bayonets, 
which  slid  down  his  spontoon,  or  spear, 
and  wounded  him  severely  in  the  side  and 
arm.  Hamilton  thought  him  entitled  to 
"peculiar  applause."  Captain  Hunt  was 
also  wounded,  as  well  as  Kirkpatrick,  of 
the  Sappers.  Hamilton  himself  behaved 
with  conspicuous  gallantry  in  the  front. 
Colonel  Armand  and  three  officers  of  liis 
troop  accompanied  him  as  volunteers,  and 
stimulated  the  troops  by  their  example. 
Gimat  was  wounded  in  the  foot  just  as 
the  obstructions  were  reached,  and  retired.  Laurens  meanwhile  had  con 
ducted  his  two  companies  with  his  usual  skill  and  nerve,  and  succeeded 
in  coming  in  at  the  right  moment  to  make  Major  Campbell  his  prisoner. 
With  him  was  Captain  Betts,  who  was  also  honored  with  a  wound.  A 
Sergeant  Brown,  of  the  Fifth  Connecticut,  was  subsequently  awarded  a 
special  "badge  of  merit"  for  his  coolness  and  gallant  conduct  as  one  of 

1  See  Hamilton's  account  of  this  affair — a  model  of  a  military  report. —  Works,  vol.  i., 
p.  270. 

The  entry  in  the  "Journal"  in  Martin  for  the  14th  is  this:  "About  2  o'clock  P.M. 
the  out  defences  of  two  redoubts  that  were  advanced  on  the  left  250  yards  in  their 
front  were  thought  sufficiently  weakened  to  attempt  them  that  evening  by  storm.  The 
light  infantry  were  relieved  and  directed  to  refresh  themselves  with  dinner  and  a  nap. 
About  dusk  they  moved  on  under  the  Marquis,  and  were  in  possession  of  one  in  nine 
minutes.  The  other  was  carried  by  the  French  grenadiers  and  light  infantry  under 
Baron  Viomenil,  nearly  about  the  same  time,  when  the  second  parallel  was  continued 
on  and  enveloped  these  two  redoubts,  and  finished  a  line  of  communication  between 
the  rights  of  the  first  and  second  parallel  of  upwards  of  a  mile,  before  daylight  next 
morning.  The  whole  of  this  was  performed  under  a  very  incessant  and  heavy  fire  from 
the  enemy,  with  amazing  steadiness  and  expedition." 


ALKXANDKK    HAMILTON. 


THE   SIEGE   OF   YORKTOWN.  147 

Hamilton's  forlorn  hope.  So  well  had  every  movement  been  timed,  that 
Major  Fish's  battalion,  which  followed  Gimat's,  inclining  to  the  left,  par 
ticipated  in  the  assault;  and  Lieutenant-colonel  Barber's  battalion,  which 
Lafayette  sent  forward  at  the  last  moment  to  support  Hamilton,  was  on 
hand  after  the  assault  to  help  hold  the  position  in  case  of  a  counter-attack 
by  the  enemy.  The  American  loss  in  the  affair  was  nine  killed  and 
twenty-five  wounded.1 

Washington  could  not  conceal  his  enthusiasm  over  the  success  of 
these  brilliant  feats,  and  in  General  Orders  he  praised  the  troops  unstint 
edly —  officers  and  men  alike.2  "What  also  redounded  to  the  credit  of 
the  Americans  was  their  forbearance,  under  aggravating  circumstances, 
in  the  hour  of  victory.  The  brutality  of  Arnold's  conduct  at  New 
London  was  fresh  in  their  minds,  and  Scammell's  fate  at  the  opening 
of  the  siege  could  not  be  forgotten ;  but,  on  the  night  of  this  assault, 
no  retaliation  was  encouraged  or  indulged  in.3 


1  Compare  Hamilton's  return  of  the  casualties,  in  Appendix.    In  addition  to  the  offi 
cers  mentioned  above,  Lieutenant-colonel  Barber  and  Major  Barber,  Division  Inspector, 
were  slightly  wounded;  also,  according  to  Gordon,  Major  Gibbs,  of  Vose's  battalion  in 
reserve.    Lafayette's  report  may  be  found  in  his  "  Memoirs  "  and  Sparks'  "  Correspond 
ence  of  the  Revolution." 

2  "The  Commander-in-chief  congratulates  the  army  on  the  success  of  the  enter 
prise  against  the  two  important  works  on  the  left  of  the  enemy's  line.     He  requests 
the   Baron   Viomcnil,  who   commanded    the  French    Grenadiers   and    Chasseurs,  and 
Marquis  DC  La  Fayette,  who  commanded  the  American  Light  Infantry,  to  accept  his 
warmest  acknowledgments,  for  the  excellency  of  their  dispositions,  and  for  their  own 
gallant  conduct  on  the  occasion ;  and  he  begs  them  to  present  his  thanks  to  every 
individual  officer,  and  to  the  men  of  their  respective  commands,  for  the  spirit  and 
rapidity  with  which  they  advanced  to  the  attacks  assigned  them,  and  for  the  admi 
rable  firmness  with  which  they  supported  them,  under  the  fire  of  the  enemy,  without 
returning  a  shot. 

"The  General  reflects  with  the  highest  degree  of  pleasure  on  the  confidence  which 
the  troops  of  the  two  nations  must  hereafter  have  in  each  other.  Assured  of  mutual 
support,  he  is  convinced  there  is  no  danger  which  they  will  not  cheerfully  encounter 
— no  difficulty  which  they  will  not  bravely  overcome." — General  Orders,  October  15th, 
1781. 

3  In  this  connection,  Lafayette's  brief  speech  at  the  "  Rock  Redoubt,"  in  1824,  will 
be  read  with  interest.     He  was  welcomed  by  General  Taylor,  who  closed  his  address 
with  presenting  him  a  laurel  wreath.     As  he  was  about  to  fix  it  upon  Lafayette's  brow 
the  latter  took  it  in  his  hand,  and  made  the  following  reply: 

"  I  most  cordially  thank  you,  my  dear  General,  and  your  companions  in  arms,  for 
your  affectionate  welcome,  your  kind  recollections,  and  the  flattering  expressions  of 
your  friendship.  Happy  I  am  to  receive  them  on  these  already  ancient  lines,  where 
the  united  arms  of  America  and  France  have  been  gloriously  engaged  in  a  Holy  Al- 


148  THE   YORKTOWN   CAMPAIGN. 

No  sooner  were  the  redoubts  taken  than  the  supports  fell  to  dig 
ging,  and  by  morning  both  works  were  included  in  the  second  parallel, 
which  thus  became  complete,  and  unpleasantly  menacing  to  the  besieged. 
To  Clinton,  who  was  making  hurried  efforts  to  rescue  him,  Cornwallis 
wrote  on  the  15th:  "Last  evening  the  enemy  carried  two  advanced 
redoubts  on  the  left  by  storm,  and  during  the  night  have  included 
them  in  their  second  parallel,  which  they  are  at  present  busy  in  per 
fecting.  My  situation  now  becomes  very  critical;  we  dare  not  show 
a  gun  to  their  old  batteries,  and  I  expect  that  their  new  ones  will  open 
to-morrow  morning.  Experience  has  shown  that  our  fresh  earthen  works 
do  not  resist  their  powerful  artillery,  so  that  we  shall  soon  be  exposed 
to  an  assault  in  ruining  works,  in  a  bad  position,  and  with  weakened 
numbers.  The  safety  of  the  place  is,  therefore,  so  precarious  that  I 
cannot  recommend  that  the  fleet  and  army  should  run.  any  great  risk 
in  endeavoring  to  save  us." 

.  It  would  liave  been  quite  contrary  to  the  custom  of  a  besieged 
force,  and  rather  a  reflection  upon  the  British  troops  in  particular,  had 
no  sortie  been  made  by  them  upon  the  besiegers  ;  and,  accordingly,  on 
the  night  of  the  15th,  we  find  them  dashing  out  at  the  second  parallel 
with  their  wonted  courage,  and  repeating  what  the  French  and  Ameri 
cans  had  done  two  nights  before.  Cornwallis's  object  was  to  cripple 
some  unfinished  batteries,  whose  fire,  when  opened,  would  prove  too 
destructive,  and  thus  gain  a  little  more  time  for  still  possible  relief. 
The  party,  which  was  led  by  Colonel  Abercrornbie,  numbered  about 

liance  to  support  the  right  of  American  Independence,  and  the  sacred  principle  of 
the  sovereignty  of  the  people.  Happy,  also,  to  be  so  welcomed  on  the  particular  spot 
•where  my  dear  light  infantry  comrades  acquired  one  of  their  honorable  claims  to 
public  love  and  esteem.  You  know,  sir,  that  in  this  business  of  storming  redoubts, 
with  unloaded  arms  and  fixed  bayonets,  the  merit  of  the  deed  is  in  the  soldiers  who 
execute  it;  and  to  each  of  them  I  am  anxious  to  acknowledge  their  equal  share  of 
honor.  Let  me,  however,  with  affection  and  gratitude,  pay  a  special  tribute  to  the 
gallant  name  of  Hamilton,  who  commanded  the  attack,  to  the  three  field-officers  who 
seconded  him,  Gimat,  Laurens,  and  Fish,  the  only  surviving  one,  my  friend  now  near 
me.  In  their  name,  my  dear  General,  in  the  name  of  the  light  infantry,  those  we 
have  lost  as  well  as  those  who  survive,  and  only  in  common  with  them,  I  accept  the 
crown  with  which  you  are  pleased  to  honor  us,  and  I  oft'er  you  the  return  of  the  most 
grateful  acknowledgments." 

Turning  to  Colonel  Fish,  who  was  with  him,  he  exclaimed,  "Here,  half  of  this 
wreath  belongs  to  you."  "No,  sir,  it  is  all  your  own,"  was  the  reply.  "Then, "said 
Lafayette,  putting  it  into  the  colonel's  hand,  "take  it  and  preserve  it  as  our  common 
property." — From  the  account  by  an  eye-witness  entitled  "  The  Siege  of  York  in  178.1;  and 
the  Celebration  of  the  Capture  of  Cormcallis,  the  \Sth  October,  1824."  Pamphlet,  20  pp. 


THE   SIEGE   OF   YORKTOWN.  140 

four  hundred  men,  half  of  them  light  infantry,  under  Major  Armstrong, 
and  the  other  half,  the  grenadiers  of  the  Foot-guards  and  Captain  Mur 
ray's  company  of  the  Eightieth,  under  Lieutenant-colonel  Lake.  Mov 
ing  forward  about  three  o'clock  in  the  morning,  they  rushed  upon  a 
French  battery,  drove  off  the  guards,  spiked  four  cannon,  and  then  at 
tacked  Captain  Savage's  battery  to  its  right.  Entering  it,  they  quick 
ly  spiked  liis  three  guns  with  bayonet  -points  and  challenged,  "  What 
troops?"  "French/'  came  the  answer;  on  which  Abercrombie  shouted, 
''Rush  on,  mv  brave  boys,  and  skin  the  hounds!"  But  just  then  the 
Count  de  Noailles,  who  had  command  of  the  supports  that  night,  dis 
tinctly  hearing  Abercrombie's  cry,  ordered  his  grenadiers  to  the  charge, 
when  they  instantly  met  the  British  with  the  shout  of  "Vive  le  roi !" 
killed  eight  of  them,  took  twelve  prisoners,  with  the  loss  of  twenty  of 
ficers  and  men  on  their  part,  and  one  American  sergeant,  and  prevent 
ed  the  assailants  from  doing  further  mischief.1  It  was  altogether  a 
gallant  sortie,  but  it  proved  of  no  avail,  and  in  six  hours  the  spiked 
guns  were  playing  upon  Yorktown.  When  some  British  officers  vis 
ited  the  spot,  after  the  surrender,  the  French  feelingly  showed  them 
the  grave  of  a  brave  sergeant  of  the  Guards,  whom  they  had.  buried  in 
the  parapet  where  he  fell. 

Cornwallis  now  thoroughly  appreciated  his  critical  position,  but  deter 
mined  to  make  a  desperate  effort  to  escape  before  surrendering.  On  the 
night  of  the  10th  he  began  to  transfer  his  troops  to  the  opposite  side,  at 
Gloucester  Point,  with  the  design  of  breaking  through  the  besiegers  there 
with  his  whole  force,  and  by  rapid  marches  push  northward  to  New  York.2 


1  Colonel  Butler's  "  Journal." 

3  On  the  next  morning,  October  17th,  Governor  Nelson  wrote  to  Hon.  Geo.  Webb : 
••  Since  my  last  we  took  by  storm  two  of  the  enemy's  redoubts.  The  loss  on  both  sides 
•was  nearly  equal,  and  did  not  exceed  100.  Our  batteries  are  now  playing  on  their 
works  at  the  distance  of  about  200  yards.  By  noon,  I  am  informed,  we  shall  have 
seventy  pieces  of  heavy  cannon  planted  against  them,  which  must  soon  reduce  them  to 
terms,  unless  they  take  a  flight  to  Gloucester,  which  may  delay  their  capture  a  few  days. 
Yesterday  morning,  a  little  before  daybreak,  they  made  a  sally  and  got  into  one  of  our 
batteries.  They  spiked  eight  cannon,  which  were  immediately  unspiked,  and  killed 
and  wounded  about  sixteen  men.  They  were  repulsed,  and  suffered  nearly  the  same 
loss." 

In  regard  to  his  projected  escape,  Cornwallis  says,  in  his  answer  to  Clinton :  "  The 
success  of  this  attempt  would,  no  doubt,  have  been  precarious,  and  I  cannot  say  that  it 
would  have  been  practicable  to  reach  New  York ;  but,  in  our  desperate  situation,  I 
thought  it  well  deserved  a  trial."  Clinton  replied  that  he  could  not  see  "  the  least  day 
light"  in  it. 


150  THE   YORKTOWN   CAMPAIGN. 

It  is  scarcely  possible  that  he  could  have  succeeded  ;  and  the  elements  in 
terposed  to  stop  him.  At  midnight  a  storm  arose,  preventing  the  cross 
ing  of  all  the  troops,  and  at  dawn  those  who  had  already  crossed  returned 
to  their  old  stations  at  the  works,  which  were  now  crumbling  away  under 
the  point-blank  lire  of  the  new  batteries  opened  on  the  second  parallel. 

Further  resistance  would  have  been  madness.  "We  at  that  time 
could  not  fire  a  single  gun,  .  .  ."  reports  Cornwallis.  "  I  therefore  pro 
posed  to  capitulate." 


THE  SURRENDER.  151 


CHAPTER  VII. 

THE  SURRENDER. 

,  at  length,  on  the  17th  of  October — a  date  vividly  remembered  by 
our  soldiers,  as  the  anniversary  of  13  urgoy  lie's  surrender — the  end 
came.  At  ten  o'clock  that  morning  a  drummer  in  red  mounted  the  en 
emy's  parapet  on  the  left  and  began  to  beat  a  "parley."  >x  As  for  being 
heard,  he  might  have  played  till  doomsday ;  but  he  could  readily  be  seen, 
and  the  cannonading  stopped.  An  ensign  at  the  American  lines  imag 
ined  that  he  never  listened  to  music  so  delightful  as  the  sound  of  that 
drum.1  No  one  could  have  misunderstood  its  meaning.  In  fact,  the 
drummer  in  that  particular  role  was  somewhat  of  a  momentous  figure. 
He  seemed  to  publicly  confess  the  end  of  British  domination  in  Amer 
ica,  and  proclaim  the  success  of  the  "rebel"  Revolution. 

With  the  drummer  appeared  an  officer  waving  a  white  handkerchief. 
He  was  met  and  blindfolded  by  an  American  officer,  and  conducted  to 
the  rear  of  our  lines.  >  The  message  Cornwallis  had  sent  by  him  to  Wash 
ington  was  to  the  effect  that  hostilities  be  suspended  for  twenty -four 
hours,  and  joint  commissioners  appointed  to  determine  the  terms  of  sur 
render.  v  To  this  Washington  replied  that  he  should  prefer,  before  the 
meeting  of  commissioners,  to  have  his  Lordship's  proposals  submitted  to 
him  in  writing,  and  that  for  the  purpose  he  would  grant  a  suspension  of 
hostilities  for  two  hours.  ^  Cornwallis  complied,  and  sent  in  the  terms  on 
which  he  proposed  to  capitulate.  Among  his  demands  he  included  the 
inadmissible  condition  that  his  troops  should  be  sent  to  England  upon  a 
parole  not  to  serve  against  either  France  or  America  during  the  continu 
ance  of  the  war  unless  regularly  exchanged.  Again  the  flag  returned,  and 
this  time  with  an  ultimatum  from  Washington,  who  had  good  reasons  for 
wasting  as  little  time  as  possible  in  the  negotiations.  There  existed  all 
through  the  siege  the  possibility  of  the  British  fleet's  appearance  off  the; 
Capes,  and  the  breaking  up  of  De  Grasse's  blockade  of  the  York,  which 

1  Ensign  Denny,  Penn.  Line. 


152 


THE   YOKKTOWN   CAMPAIGN. 


might  prove  fatal  to  the  success  of  the  siege  operations.  Every  day's 
delay  increased  the  danger.  The  situation  might  change  any  hour,  and 
Cornwallis  be  encouraged  to  hold  out  in  the  hope  of  immediate  relief. 
Washington's  terms  included  the  surrender  of  the  British  army  as  prison 
ers  of  war,  upon  the  basis  of  the  Charleston  capitulation  in  1780,  to  which 
Cornwallis  yielded.  This  result  was  effected  by  the  night  of  the  17th, 
and  on  the  18th  commissioners  met  to  digest  and  embody  the  articles. 

On  the  part  of  the  British  ap 
peared  Lieutenant  -colonel  Duri- 
das  and  Major  lloss,  and  for  the 
French  and  Americans  the  Vis 
count  de  Noailles  and  Lieuten 
ant-colonel  Laurens.  They  met 
at  the  Moore  house,  which  still 
stands  on  the  bank  of  the  York,  a 
short  distance  in  the  rear  of  the 
American  lines,  and  drew  up  four 
teen  articles,  providing  for  the 
surrender  of  the  garrison,  and  the 
disposition  of  the  ordnance,  stores, 
ships,  and  Loyalists.  On  the  morning  of  the  19th  these  were  submitted 
to  Cornwallis,  accompanied  by  a  note  from  Washington  intimating  his 
expectation  that  the  terms  would  be  signed  by  eleven  o'clock  that  morn 
ing,  and  that  the  troops  would  march  out  to  surrender  their  arms  at  two 
in  the  afternoon.1 

*"  Toward  eleven  o'clock  the  articles  were  signed  "  in  the  trenches,"  and 
Cornwallis  and  his  army,  which  had  been  the  scourge  of  the  South  for 
fourteen  months,  were  prisoners  of  war.2  The  British  "Hannibal"  had 
found  his  Zama  in  Yorktown.  - 


rf 


THE    MOOKK    IIOUSK. 


1  For  the  correspondence  and  articles  of  capitulation,  with  Cornwallis's  report  of  the 
siege  and  surrender,  see  Appendix. 

2  Clinton  attempted  to  relieve  Cornwallis,  but  arrived  off  the  Chesapeake  only  to 
hear  of  the  surrender.     The  fleet  under  Graves  and  Hood  was  detained  for  repairs, 
when  every  moment  was  precious.    It  was  proposed  that  the  fleet  should  offer  battle  to 
De  Grasse  and  get  him  out  to  sea,  which  would  give  the  frigates  and  transports,  with 
seven  thousand  troops,  the  opportunity  of  running  in  and  up  the  York  River  to  York- 
town.     In  case  this  could  not  be  effected,  the  troops  were  to  be  landed  at  or  near  the 
Severn  River  and  push  on  to  Gloucester;  and,  for  a  third  alternative,  a  landing  was  to 
be  attempted  at  Jamestown  Island,  in  the  rear  of  the  allies.     Had  the  relieving  fleet 
appeared  as  early  as  the  5th,  it  might  have  proved  a  very  disturbing  factor  in  the 
situation. 


^^y^ 

in/  ^ / 


jfrA^  frr*^?^. 


&rz?*-* 


J 


'      ./1/  ^rt^r^i  (&3  < 

1         C/    /  • 


KAC-SIMILK  OF    ONE    OF    THE    ARTICLES    OF    CAPITULATION. 


Of  THE          \ 
I   UNIVERSITY    1 


THE    SURRENDER.  155 

At  noon  of  the  19th  we  have  the  first  act  of  surrender.  Yorktown 
changed  hands.  Two  redoubts  on  the  left  of  the  enemy's  works  were  at 
that  hour  taken  possession  of  by  detachments  from  the  allied  army. 
Colonel  Richard  Butler  commanded  the  American,  and  the  Marquis  Laval 
the  French  party,  each  of  one  hundred  men.  At  two  o'clock  we  reach 
the  closing  scene.  The  army  of  Cornwallis  marched  out 'as  prisoners  of 
war,  grounded  their  arms,  and  then  marched  back.  Accounts  agree  in 
describing  the  display  and  ceremony  on  the  occasion  as  quite  imposing. 
The  British  appeared  in  new  uniforms,  distributed  among  them  a  few 
days  before,  and  it  only  required  the  flying  of  their  standards  to  give 
their  march  the  effect  of  a  holiday  parade.  But  their  colors  were  cased, 
and  they  were  prohibited  from  playing  either  a  French  or  an  American 
tune.  This  was  the  return  of  a  compliment — a  piece  of  justifiable  as  well 
as  poetic  retaliation  on  the  part  of  the  Americans  for  what  the  enemy 
were  pleased  to  command  when  General  Lincoln  was  compelled  to  surren 
der  at  Charleston  the  year  before.,  The  matter  came  up  at  the  meeting 
of  the  Commissioners: 

"  This  is  a  harsh  article,"  said  Ross  to  Laurens. 

"  Which  article  ?"  answered  the  latter. 

" '  The  troops  shall  march  out,  with  colors  cased,  and  drums  l)eatin<j 
a  British  or  a  German  march."1  "*' 

"Yes,  sir,"  returned  Laurens,  with  a  touch  of  sang-froid,  "it  is  a 
harsh  article." 

"Then,"  said  Ross,  "if  that  is  your  opinion,  why  is  it  here?" 

Whereupon  Laurens,  who  had  been  made  prisoner  at  Charleston  with 
Lincoln's  army,  proceeded  to  remind  Ross  that  the  Americans  on  that 
occasion  had  made  a  brave  defence,  but  were  ungallantly  refused  any 
honors  of  surrender  other  than  to  march  out  with  colors  cased  and  drunih 
not  beating  a  British  or  a  German  inarch. 

"  But,"  rejoined  Ross,  "  my  Lord  Cornwallis  did  not  command  at 
Charleston." 

"  There,  sir,"  said  Laurens,  "you  extort  another  observation:  it  is  not 
the  individual  that  is  here  considered ;  it  is  the  nation.  This  remains  an 
article,  or  I  cease  to  be  a  commissioner." 

Nothing  more  was  to  be  said ;  the  article  stood,  and  the  enemy 
marched  out  with  colors  cased,  while  the  tune  they  chose  to  follow  was 
an  old  British  march  with  the  quite  appropriate  title  of  "  The  World 
Turned  Upside  Down."1 


Garden's  "Anecdotes  of  the  Revolution." 


156 


THE   YOKKTOWN   CAMPAIGN. 


As  the  prisoners  moved  out  of  their  works  along  the  Hampton  Road 
they  found  the  French  and  American  armies  drawn  up  on  either  side  of 
the  way — the  Americans  on  the  right,  and  extending  for  more  than  a 
mile  toward  the  Held  of  surrender.  The  French  troops  presented  a  brill 
iant  spectacle  in  their  white  uniforms,  with  plumed  and  decorated  offi 
cers  at  their  head,  and  gorgeous  standards  of  white  silk,  embroidered  with 
golden  fleur-de-lis,  floating  along  the  line.  The  Americans  were  less  of 
an  attraction  in  outward  appearance,  but  not  the  less  eagerly  eyed  by 
their  antagonists.  Among  the  war-worn  Continentals  there  was  variety 
of  dress,  poor  at  the  best,  distinguishing  the  men  of  the  different  lines; 
but,  to  compensate  for  lack  of  show,  there  was  a  soldierly  bearing  about 
them  which  commanded  attention.  The  militia  formed  in  their  rear  pre 
sented  a  less  martial  si^'lit,  so  far  as  clothing  and  order  were  concerned. 

O  '  ^J 

But  all  these  men  were  conquerors,  and  their  very  appearance  bespoke  the 
hardships  and  privation  they  and  their  States  had  undergone  to  win  in 

the  struggle.  At  the  head  of  the 
respective  lines  were  the  com 
manding  generals,  nobly  mount 
ed  —  Washington,  Rochambeau, 
Lincoln,  Lafayette,  Steuben, 
Knox,  and  the  rest.  Leading  the 
British  came  General  O'Hara  in 
stead  of  Cornwallis.  The  latter 
pleaded  illness,  but  he  sent  his 
sword  by  O'llara  to  be  given  up 
to  Washington.  As  O'Hara  ad 
vanced  to  the  chief,  he  was  re 
ferred  to  Lincoln, -who,  upon  re 
ceiving  the  sword  as  a  token  of 
the  enemy's  submission,  imme 
diately  returned  it  to  the  British 
general,  whose  troops  then  march 
ed  between  the  two  lines  to  a 
field  on  the  right,  where  they 

grounded  their  arms.  For  the  proud  and  veteran  soldiers,  who  were  the 
heroes  of  repeated  Southern  victories,  this  was  a  humiliating  ceremony, 
but  it  was  done  in  good  order.  -In  the  field  a  squadroi^f  French  hus 
sars  had  formed  a  circle,  and  wijyn  it  each  regiment  Marched  and  de 
posited  their  arms.  There  wereJRd  hearts  in  the  columnV  The  colonel 
of  the  Bayreuthian  regiment,  Von  Seybothen,  led  his  men  into  the  circle 


GKXKKAL    I1KNJAMIN    LINCOLN. 


THE   SURRENDER.  157 

and  gave   the  commands :    "  Present  arms !     Lay  down  arms !     Put  off 

c5 

swords  and  cartridge-boxes !"  his  cheeks  wet  with  tears.  A  corporal  in 
the  Seventy-sixth  feelingly  clasped  his  musket  to  his  breast  and  then 
threw  it  down,  with  the  words,  "May  you  never  get  so  good  a  master!" 
Writes  a  captain,  "  We  marched  out  reluctantly  enough,"  Trurnbull's 
painting  in  the  Rotunda  at  the  Capitol  represents  the  surrender  of  the 
enemy's  standards.1 

Returning  to  their  tents  through  the  same  lines,  the  British  were  per 
mitted  a  few  days  of  rest,  when  the  rank  and  file,  with  a  number  of  offi 
cers,  were  marched  off  to  prison-camps  at  Winchester,  Virginia,  and  Fred 
erick,  Maryland,  guarded  chiefly  by  militiamen.  Their  route  lay  through 
Williamsburg,  Fredericksburg,  Red  House,  and  Ashby's  Gap,  into  the 
Shenandoah  Valley.2  Cornwallis  and  his  principal  officers  were  allowed 
to  return  to  New  York  on  parole,  though  not  till  they  had  been  hospitably 
entertained  by  their  victors.  Both  Washington  and  Rochambeau  invited 
the  distinguished  prisoners  to  their  tables,  and  for  several  days  camp  din 
ners  were  the  fashion,  at  which  the  English  were  the  guests.  "The  Amer- 


1  See,  in  Appendix,  a  letter  from  Colonel  Fontaine,  ;in  eye-witness,  describing  the 
surrender.     Surgeon  Thaclier,  Colonel  Harry  Lee,  and  others  also  give  details  of  the 
scene.    "The  most  pleasing  sight  I  ever  beheld,  to  see  those  haughty  fellows  march  out 
of  their  strong  fortifications  and  ground  their  arms,"  wrote  Captain  Welles,  of  Gimat's 
Light  Infantry,  to  his  father,  four  days  after.     In  a  note  dated  8  A.M.  the  morning  of 
the  surrender,  Knox  wrote  gayly  to  his  wife:  "I  have  detained  William  [his  brother] 
until  this  morning,  that  I  might  be  the  first  to  communicate  good  news  to  the  charmer 
of  my  soul.    A  glorious  moment  for  America  !    This  day  Lord  Cornwallis  and  his  army 
march  out  and  pile  their  arms  in  the  face  of  our  victorious  army.  .  .  .     They  will  have 
the  same  honors  as  the  garrison  of  Charleston ;  that  is,  they  will  not  be  permitted  to 
unfurl  their  colors  or  play  Yankee  Doodle.    We  know  not  yet  how  many  there  are.     Tin; 
General  has  requested  me  to  be  at  head-quarters  instantly,  therefore  I  cannot  be  more 
particular." — DRAKE'S  Memoir  of  General  Knox. 

2  When  the  prisoners  were  passing  through  the  Gap  two  or  three  of  the  English 
officers  rode  up  to  Mrs.  Ashby's  tavern,  and  asked  if  she  could  get  them  up  a  dinner. 
She  stared  at  their  uniforms,  and  ejaculated  at  the  spokesman, 

"  A  militiaman,  I  guess  ?" 

"  No,"  said  the  officer. 

"Continental,  mayhap?" 

Another  negative. 

"Olio!"  she  exclaimed  again,"!  see;  you  are  one  of  the  sarpints — one  ofold'Wal- 
lis's  men.  Well,  now,  I  have  two  sons;  oife  was  at  the  catching  of  Johnny  Burgoyne, 
and  the  other  at  that  of  you,  and  next  year  they  are  both  going  to  catch  Clinton  at  New 
York.  But  you  shall  be  treated  kindly:  my  mother  came  from  the  old  country." — 
GKNEKAL  GRAHAM'S  Memoirs. 


158  THE   YORKTOWN   CAMPAIGN. 

ican,  French,  and  English  generals,"  says  Lafayette,  in  his  "Memoirs," 
"'  visited  each  other,  and  everything  passed  with  every  possible  mark  of 
attention,  especially  toward  Lord  Cornwallis,  one  of  the  most  estimable 
men  of  England,  who  was  considered  their  best  general."  The  American 
wing  of  the  allied  army  took  up  the  return  inarch  to  the  Hudson  about 
Xovember  1st,  while  the  French  remained  around  Yorktown  until  the  fol 
lowing  spring,  when  they  returned  to  Rhode  Island.  In  December,  1782, 
they  embarked  from  Boston  for  the  West  Indies,  after  a  stay  in  this  coun 
try  of  nearly  two  years  and  a  half. 

Comparing  the  statistics  of  the  siege,  we  find  that  the  total  number  of 
British,  officers  and  men,  surrendered  on  October  19th  and  taken  during 
the  operations,  was  officially  reported  to  Congress  by  Washington  as  seven 
thousand  two  hundred  and  forty-seven,  and  eight  hundred  and  forty  sea 
men.  Their  losses,  as  published  by  themselves,  were  one  hundred  and 
fifty-six  killed,  and  three  hundred  and  twenty-six  wounded.  Over  fifteen 
hundred  were  reported  as  sick  or  unfit  for  duty  at  the  time  of  the  capitu 
lation.  Of  the  twenty-four  regimental  standards  surrendered,  eighteen 
were  German  and  six  British,  the  latter  belonging  to  the  Forty-third, 
Seventy-sixth,  and  Eightieth  regiments;  while  two  hundred  and  forty-four 
pieces  of  artillery  were  captured,  seventy-five  of  which  were  brass.  The 
American  loss  during  the  siege  was  twenty  killed  and  fifty-six  wounded  ; 
that  of  the  French,  fifty -two  killed  and  one  hundred  and  thirty- four 
wounded.  According  to  an  unofficial  statement,  the  number  of  sick  and 
unfit  for  duty  in  the  allied  camps  on  the  day  of  the  surrender  was  four 
teen  hundred  and  thirty. 

In  America  the  news  of  the  surrender  was  everywhere  received  with 
the  profoundest  joy.  Lieutenant-colonel  Tilghman,  Washington's  aide, 
who  had  been  with  him  since  the  battle  of  Long  Island,  rode  with  the 
official  despatches  for  Congress  as  fast  as  horse  could  carry  him,  reaching 
Philadelphia  soon  after  midnight  of  the  24th.  He  roused  the  President, 
Thomas  McKean,  and  the  great  news  was  soon  spread  through  the  city 
by  the  watchmen.1  Congress  met  in  the  morning,  and,  after  hearing  the 


1  "  ANECDOTE. — A  watchman  of  this  city,  after  having  conducted  the  express  rider 
to  the  door  of  his  Excellency  the  President  of  Congress,  on  Monday  morning  last,  the 
honest  old  German  continued  the  duties  of  his  function,  calling  out,  '  Basht  dree 
o'glock,  und  Gorn— \val — lis  isht  da — ken.1" — Perm.  Freeman's  Journal;  N.  T.  Packet, 
Nov.  1, 1781. 


THE   SURRENDER.  159 

despatches  read,  proceeded  in  a  body,  at  two  o'clock  in  the  afternoon,  to 
the  Lutheran  church,  where  services  were  held  by  the  Rev.  Mr.  Duffield, 
one  of  the  chaplains  of  the  body.  Later  they  passed  resolutions  of  thanks 
to  the  annv,  and  for  the  erection  of  a  monument  at  Yorktown  in  com 
memoration  of  the  event.  A  grand  illumination  of  the  city  in  the  even 
ing  ended  the  day's  rejoicings,  which  were  then  continued  throughout  the 
country.1  The  army  in  the  Highlands,  under  Heath,  devoted  nearly  a 
week  to  salutes  and  camp  banquets,  with  Continental  menu;  and  at  Har 
vard  and  Yale  there  were  orations  and  bonfires.  The  students  of  the  lat 
ter  college  sung  "a  triumphal  hymn;"  and  its  president,  Dr.  Stiles,  was 
afterward  moved  to  write  to  Washington  in  terms  like  these:  "We  rejoice 
that  the  Sovereign  of  the  Universe  hath  hitherto  supported  you  as  the  de 
liverer  of  your  country,  the  Defender  of  the  Liberty  and  Rights  of  Hu 
manity,  and  the  Maecenas  of  Science  and  Literature.  We  share  the  pub 
lic  Joy,  and  congratulate  our  Country  on  the  Glory  of  your  arms,  and 
that  eminence  to  which  you  have  ascended  in  the  recent  Victory  over 
the  Earl  of  Cornwallis  and  his  army  in  Virginia."  Nor  are  we  to  forget 
that  our  generous  ally  Louis  XVI.  of  France,  upon  hearing  of  the  sur 
render,  ordered  a  "  Te  Deum"  to  be  sung  in  the  Metropolitan  church 
in  Paris,  on  the  27th  of  November,  while  the  Bureau  de  la  Ville  issued 
an  ordinance  directing  "all  the  bourgeois  and  inhabitants"  of  the  city  to 
illuminate  the  fronts  of  their  houses,  "  in  order  to  celebrate  with  due 


1  The  New  York  Journal  of  Nov.  12th,  1781,  says:  "This  very  important  and  remark 
able  event,  the  capture  of  a  whole  British  army,  the  second  time,  just  four  years  after 
the  first,  botii  under  commanders  of  the  most  approved  characters  and  ability — an  event 
in  which  the  hand  of  heaven  lias  been  visibly  displayed — has  been  celebrated,  in  various 
expressions  of  thankfulness  and  joy,  by  almost  every  town  and  society  in  the  thirteen 
United  States,  at  the  different  times  when  the  news  came  to  their  knowledge." 

The  Connecticut  Delegates  in  Congress  announced  the  news  to  Governor  Trum- 

bull  as  follows : 

"Philn.,  Octr.  25,  17S1. 

"Siu: — We  have  the  honor  now  to  transmit  to  your  Excellency  an  official  account 
of  the  surrender  of  Lord  Cornwallis  and  the  army  under  his  command.  The  de 
spatches  from  Gen.  Washington  were  recd  yesterday  morning  and  at  two  o'clock  in  the 
afternoon  Congress  went  in  a  body  to  the  Lutheran  Church,  where  divine  service  (suit 
able  to  the  occasion)  was  performed  by  the  Rev.  Mr.  Duffield,  one  of  the  chaplains  of 
Congress.  The  Supreme  Executive  Council  and  Assembly  of  this  State,  the  Minister  of 
France  and  his  secretary,  and  a  great  number  of  the  citizens  attended.  In  the  evening 
the  city  was  illuminated.  This  great  event  we  hope  will  prove  a  happy  presage  of  a 
compleat  reduction  of  the  British  forces  in  these  States  and  prepare  the  way  for  the 
Establishment  of  an  honorable  Peace.  .  .  .  ROGER  SHEKMAN. 

RICHARD  LAW." 
[From  the  Trnmbull  Manuscripts,  Mass.  Hist.  Socfety.] 


10D 


THE    YOKKTOWN   CAMPAIGN. 


respect  a  great  victory  gained  in  America,  both  by  land  and  sea,  over  tlie 
English,  by  the  armies  of  the  King  combined  with  those  commanded  bv 
General  Washington." 

Even  in  Great  Britain  the  disappointment  was  not  universal.  Ban 
croft  tells  us  that  "Fox — to  whom,  in  reading  history,  the  defeats  of 
armies  of  invaders,  from  Xerxes'  time  downward,  gave  the  greatest  satis 
faction — heard  of  the  capitulation  of  York- 
town  with  wild  delight."  The  King,  of 
course,  was  still  firm  and  uncompromising, 
and  declared  that  he  should  never  be  "  in 
the  smallest  degree  an  instrument  "in  mak 
ing  peace  at  the  expense  of  separation  from 
America.1  To  Lord  North  he  wrote,  Novem 
ber  28th :  "  I  have  no  doubt  when  men  are 
a  little  recovered  of  the  shock  felt  by  the 
bad  news,  and  feel  that  if  we  recede  no  one 
can  tell  to  what  a  degree  the  consequence  of 
this  country  will  be  diminished,  that  they 
will  then  find  the  necessity  of  carrying  on 
LOCIS  xvi.  tne  war>  though  the  mode  of  it  may  require 

alterations."2  Many  good  Englishmen  be 
lieved  as  the  King  did,  and  the  gentle  poet  Cowper  was  only  avowing  his 
loyalty  to  his  sovereign  and  his  nation  when  he  inserted  this  passage  in  a 
letter  to  his  friend  the  Rev.  John  Newton:  "It  appears  to  me  that  the 
King  is  bound,  both  by  the  duty  he  owes  to  himself  and  his  people,  to 
consider  himself  with  respect  to  every  inch  of  his  territory  as  a  trustee, 
deriving  his  interest  in  them  from  God,  and  invested  with  them  by  Divine 
authority  for  the  benefit  of  his  subjects.  As  he  may  not  sell  them  or 
waste  them,  so  he  may  not  resign  them  to  an  enemy,  or  transfer  his  right 
to  govern  them  to  any,  not  even  to  themselves,  so  long  as  it  is  possible  for 
him  to  keep  it.  If  he  does,  he  betrays  at  once  his  own  interest  and  that 
of  his  other  dominions.  Viewing  the  thing  in  this  light,  if  I  sat  on  his 
Majesty's  throne,  I  should  be  as  obstinate  as  he." 

^  Opinion  in  Parliament  rapidly  changed  after  the  disaster,  and  ear 
ly  in  1782  the  Commons  voted  to  authorize  the  King  to  make  peace 
with  America. 


1  An  interesting  cxtnict  from  Wraxall's  "Memoirs,"  describing  the  reception  of  the 
news  by  the  home  government,  is  given  in  the  Appendix. 
*  ''  Correspondence  with  Lord  North."     Donne. 


THE   SURRENDER.  161 

At  the  session  held  in  November  and  December,  1781,  the  majority 
on  the  side  of  the  Government  showed  a  significant  falling  off;  and 
after  the  holidays,  on  February  22d,  1782,  General  Con  way  in  the  Com 
mons,  moved  an  address  to  the  throne  in  favor  of  a  discontinuance  of 
the  war,  and  "a  happy  reconciliation  with  the  revolted  Colonies."  The 
motion  was  lost  by  a  single  vote — 193  against  194.  But,  on  the  27th, 
Con  way  introduced  the  subject  again  before  a  fuller  house,  and  after 
the  defeat,  by  nineteen  votes,  of  the  Government's  motion  for  adjourn 
ment,  carried  his  address  to  the  King  without  a  division.  On  the  4th 
of  March  another  resolution  was  passed  "that  the  House  would  con 
sider  as  enemies  to  his  Majesty  and  the  Country  all  those  who  should 
advise,  or  by  any  means  attempt,  the  further  prosecution  of  offensive 
war  on  the  Continent  of  North  America,  for  the  purpose  of  reducing 
the  revolted  Colonies  to  obedience  by  force."  These  resolutions  were 
received  by  the  English  public  with  "general  demonstrations  of  joy," 
and  afterward -in  America  with  thankful  gratitude  and  relief.  Peace 
was  assured. 

On  the  30th  of  November,  1782,  the  provisional  articles  were  signed 
by  commissioners  from  both  countries,  and  on  September  3d,  1783,  the 
definitive  treaty  formally  ratified.  The  struggle  from  Lexington  to  York- 
town  had  been  crowned  with  the  final  achievement — independence  recog 
nized. 


APPENDIX. 


PAGE 

I. — GENERAL  RETURN  OF  OFFICERS  AND  PRIVATES  SURRENDERED  PRISONERS  OF 
WAR,  THE  lOrii  OF  OCTOBER,  1781,  TO  THE  ALLIED  ARMY,  UNDER  COMMAND 
OF  HIS  EXCELLENCY  GENERAL  WASHINGTON  :  TAKEN  FROM  THE  OKIGINAL 

MUSTEK-ROLLS KM 

II. — WASHINGTON'S  JOURNAL:   EXTRACTS  ON  THE  SIEGE 1GG 

III. — DIARY  OF  THE   MARCH  FROM  THE   HUDSON   TO  YORKTOWN  AND  RETURN,  IIY 
LIEUTENANT  REUBEN  SANDERSON,  FIFTH  CONNECTICUT  CONTINENTAL  LINE, 

ON  DUTY  WITH  SCAMMBLL'S  LIGHT  INFANTRY  CORPS 170 

IV. — LETTER  FROM  LIEUTENANT-COLONEL  WILLIAM  S.  SMITH,  A.D.C.,  TO  COLONEL 

SAMUEL  B.  WEBB,  THIRD  CONNECTICUT  CONTINENTAL  LINE 173 

V. — LETTER  FROM  MAJOR  WILLIAM  POPHAM,  A.D.C.,  TO  GOVERNOR  CLINTON,  OF 

NEW  YORK 17-t 

VI. — LETTER  FROM  COLONEL  JOHN  LAMB,  SECOND  ARTILLERY,  TO  GOVERNOR  CLIN 
TON  17-t 

VII. — LETTER  FROM  LIEUTENANT- COLONEL   HENRY  DEARBORN  TO   HONORABLE  ME- 

SHECH  WEARE,  OF  NEW  HAMPSHIRE 175 

VIII. — LETTER  FROM  PETER  ELTING  TO  COLONEL  RICHARD  VARICK 175 

IX. — ACCOUNT  OF  THE  SURRENDER  BY  LIEUTENANT-COLONEL  HARRY  LEE 17(> 

X. — DESCRIPTION  OF  THE  SURRENDER  BY  COLONEL  FONTAINE,  VIRGINIA  MILITIA...  177 

XI. — WASHINGTON'S  CONGRATULATORY  ORDER  TO  THE  ALLIED  ARMY 178 

XII. — EXTRACT  FROM  WRAXALL'S  "MEMOIRS,"  DESCRIBING  RECEPTION  OF  THE  NEWS 

BY  THE  HOME  CABINET 179 

XIII. — CORNWALLIS' REPORT  OF  THE  SURRENDER 181 

XIV. — CORRESPONDENCE  ON,  AND  THE  ARTICLES  OF,  THE  CAPITULATION 185 

XV. — AMERICAN  Loss  IN  THE  SKIRMISH  WITH  SIMCOE,  AT  SPENCER'S  ORDINARY 190 

XVI. — AMERICAN  Loss  IN  THE  ACTION  OF  GREEN  SPRING 190 

XVII.' — Loss  OF  THE  ALLIES  AT  YORKTOWN 101 

XVIII. — AMERICAN  Loss  AT  THE  STORMING  OF  REDOUBT  No.  10 193 

XIX. — BRITISH  Loss  AT  THE  SIEGE  OF  YORKTOWN.... 193 

XX. — STRENGTH  OF  THE  ARMIES  AT  YORKTOWN 195 

XXI. — LIST  OF  ORIGINAL  AUTHORITIES  ON  THE  CAMPAIGN 195 

XXII.  —  WASHINGTON'S  ORDERS  AT  WILLIAMSBURG 19'J 


APPENDIX. 


I. — General  Return  of  Officers  and  Privates  Surrendered  Prisoners  of  War,  the 

General   Washington  —  taken 


REGIMENTS  OB  CORPS. 

3 

5 
3 

a 
£ 

j 

Brigadier-fji'iifrul.  ' 

Colonels. 

Lieutenant-colonels. 

C 

o 

3" 
^ 

Captains. 

Lieutenants. 

Ensigns  and  Cornets. 

E 

- 

1 

O 

Adjutants. 

Quartermasters. 

Surgeons. 

£• 

Sergeants. 

Drummers  and  Trumpet 
ers. 

E 
•e 

3 

^ 
q 

a 
K 

u 

; 
-.' 
9 
C 
£ 

General  and  Staff  

1 

1 

1 

2 

5 

0 

9 

1 

Artillery  

o 

9 

1 

1 

1 

4 

193 

Guards  

8 

1^ 

1 

•) 

1 

1 

3 

25 

19 

467 

Light  Infantry  

1 

1 

10 

16 

1 

2 

33 

13 

594 

17th  Kegiment  

1 

1 

3 

8 

4 

1 

9 

13 

205 

23d  Regiment  

8 

6 

1 

1 

1 

16 

205 

33d  Raiment  

} 

3 

5 

T 

1 

15 

Q 

225 

43d  Regiment  

1 

3 

5 

8 

1 

1 

22 

16 

307 

71st  Regiment  

1 

1 

1 

11 

4 

1 

1 

1 

28 

9 

242 

76th  Regiment  

1 

r> 

16 

4 

1 

1 

1 

1 

38 

18 

628 

80th  Regiment  

1 

2 

5 

17 

8 

1 

1 

1 

1 

49 

20 

588 

2  Battalions  Anspach  

fl 

1 

2 

8 

32 

1 

2 

'> 

10 

82 

26 

948 

Prince  Hereditary  

1 

1 

5 

5 

4 

1 

1 

4 

19 

11 

425 

Regiment  De  Bose  

2 

5 

2 

1 

1 

1 

3 

4t> 

16 

271 

Yagers  

1 

3 

1 

1 

68 

British  Lecrion  

1 

ft 

8 

8 

<•> 

1 

17 

7 

192 

Queen's  Hangers  

1 

1 

ID 

15 

11 

8 

0 

24 

5 

248 

North  Carolina  Volimteeis. 

1 

5 

9 

8 

7 

114 

Engineers  

2 

Pioneers  

2 

3 

4 

33 

Loyal  Foresters  

2 

1 

2 

3d  New  Jersey  Volunteers. 

1 

1 

2 

New  York  Volunteers...... 

1 

1 

1 

Virginia  Volunteers  

1 

1 

King's  American  Regiment 

1 

1 

lien    Delancev's  Battalion 

2 

8 

North  Carolina  Ind.  Com'y 

1 

1 

1 

1 

2 

14 

15 

95 

178 

53 

4 

li 

18 

18 

25 

385 

179 

5963 

1 

Taken  14th  and  16th  inst. 

1 

2 

o 

1 

2 

76 

Camp  near  Yorktown,  27th  October,  1781. 

K.B. — Since  finishing  the  above  Return  I  find  unaccounted  for — 1  Ensign  Loyal  Foresters, 

October  28,  1781. 

[From  Archives,  State  Dept. 


APPENDIX. 


165 


19/A   of  October,  1781,  to   the  Allied  Army  under  Command  of  his  Excellency 
from  the  Original  Muster-rolls. 


Assistant  Quartermaster. 

HOSPITAL  DEPARTMENT. 

Deputy  Commiss'j'.'  o 

3MMI9SARY    DEPART 
MENT. 

COMMISSARY  MILIT'Y 
STOKES  DEPAHTM'T. 

WAGON" 
DEP'  T. 

Provost  Marshal. 

Assistant. 

o 
u> 

'3c 
§ 

X* 

I1 

1 

Surgeon  and  Field 
Inspector. 

Surgeons. 

ts 

Purveyors. 

Stewards. 

\\'ard  Masters. 

5 

< 

c 
1 

« 

o 

1 

O 

-! 
— 
& 

&s 

c 
O 

_^ 
- 
- 

5 

Issuers. 

Coopers. 

Laborers. 

Commissary  of  Mil 
itary  Stores. 

Conductors. 

Cond'tors  of  Horse. 

Artificers. 

8 

9i 

B 

i 

e 

V 

c 

•< 

c 

js 
|o 

1 

1 

3 

10 

2 

4 

2 

19 

2 

5 

i 

5 

2 

3 

2 

1 

79 

•242 

80 

1 

3 

5 

11 

11 

527 

671 
245 
233 

260 
359 

- 

300 

715 
689 
1077 
484 
349 

i 

8 
6 

2 
1 
1 

1 

74 

241 
320 

142 

9 

42 

5 

4 
8 

2 
2 
4 

o 

1 

- 

1 

1 

3 

10 

2 

4 

2 

19 

2 

5 

i 

ft 

2 

8 

2 

1 

1 

:. 

o 

11 

i 

25 

4 

1 

7073 

80 

84 

7157 

THOMAS   DURIE, 

Deputy  Commissary  of  Prisoners. 

1  Wagon  Master,  6  Conductors,  5  Artificers,  1  Clerk  to  the  Deputy  Quartermaster-general. 

(Signed)          THOMAS  DURIK,  D.C.P. 


Library,  Washington,  D.  C.] 


166  APPENDIX. 

II. —  Washington's  Journal. 

EXTRACTS   ON   THE    SIEGE. SEPT.  28-OCT.  20,  1781. ' 

28th. — Having  debarked  all  the  troops  and  their  baggage,  marched,  and  en 
camped  them  in  front  of  the  City  [Williamsburg],  and  having  with  some  diffi 
culty  obtained  horses  and  wagons  sufficient  to  move  our  field  Artillery — Intrench 
ing  Tools — and  such  other  articles  as  were  indispensably  necessary,  we  commenced 
our  march  for  the  Investiture  of  the  enemy  at  York. 

The  American  Continental  and  French  Troops  formed  one  column  on  the  left, 
the  first  in  advance  the  Militia  composed  the  right  column  &  marched  by  the 
way  of  Harwoods  Mill — half  a  mile  beyond  the  half  way  house  the  French  and 
Americans  separated,  the  former  continued  on  the  direct  road  to  York  by  the 
Brick  House,  the  latter  filed  off  to  the  right  for  Munfords  bridge,  where  a  junction 
with  the  Militia  was  to  be  made.  About  noon  the  head  of  each  column  arrived 
at  its  ground  &  some  of  the  enemy's  Picquets  were  driven  in  at  the  left  by  a 
corps  of  French  Troops  advanced  for  the  purpose,  which  afforded  an  opportunity 
of  reconnoitering  them  on  their  right,  the  enemy's  Horse  on  the  right  were  also 
obliged  to  retire  from  the  ground  they  had  encamped  on,  &  from  whence  they 
were  employed  in  reconnoitering  the  right  column. 

The  line  being  formed  all  the  Troops — officers  and  men  lay  upon  their  arms 
during  the  night. 

29th. — Moved  the  American  Troops  more  to  the  right,  and  encamped  on  the 
East  side  of  Bever  dam  Creek,  with  a  morass  in  front,  about  cannon  shot  from 
the  enemy's  lines,  spent  this  day  in  reconnoitering  the  enemy's  position  and  de 
termining  upon  a  plan  of  attack  and  approach  which  must  be  done  without  the 
assistance  of  shipping  above  the  Town  as  the  Admiral  (notwithstanding  my  ear 
nest  solicitation)  declined  hazarding  any  vessels  on  that  Station 

30th. — The  enemy  abandoned  all  their  exterior  works,  &  the  position  they  had 
taken  without  the  town,  and  retired  within  their  Interior  works  of  defense  in 
the  course  of  last  night  immediately  upon  which  we  possessed  them,  and  made 
those  on  our  left  (with  a  little  alteration)  very  serviceable  to  us.  We  also  began 
two  enclosed  works  on  the  right  of  Pidgeon  Hill — between  that  and  the  ravine 
above  Mores  Mill 

From  this  time  till  the  6th  of  October  nothing  occurred  of  importance ;  much 
deligence  was  used  in  debarking  &  transporting  the  stores  cannon  &c,  from  Tre- 
bells  landing  (distant  6  miles)  on  James  Rivr  to  camp;  which  for  want  of  teams 
went  on  heavily — and  in  preparing  Fascines,  Gabions  tfc  Cn  for  the  seige,  as  also 
in  reconnoitering  the  enemy's  defenses,  &  their  situation  as  perfectly  as  possible, 
to  form  our  parallels  ifc  mode  of  attack 

1  From  a  copy  of  the  original  in  the  Library  of  the  State  Department,  Washington. 
Printed  in  full  in  the  Magazine  of  American  History,  February  and  August,  1881. 


APPENDIX.  167 

The  teams  which  were  sent  round  from  the  head  of  Elk,  having  arrived  about 
this  time,  we  were  enabled  to  bring  forward  our  heavy  Artillery  and  Stores  with 
more  convenience  and  dispatch  and  everything  being  prepared  for  opening  Trenches 
1500  Fatigue  men  &  2800  to  cover  them  were  ordered  for  this  service. 

6th. — Before  morning  the  Trenches  were  in  such  forwardness  as  to  cover  the 
men  from  the  enemy's  fire  —  The  work  was  executed  with  so  much  secresy  <fe 
dispatch  that  the  enemy  were,  I  believe,  totally  ignorant  of  our  labor  till  the  light 
of  the  morning  discovered  it  to  them  ;  our  loss  on  this  occasion  was  extremely 
inconsiderable  not  more  than  one  officer  (French)  and  about  20  men  killed  and 
wounded,  the  officer  «fc  15  of  which  were  on  our  left  from  the  corps  of  the  Marq* 
de  St.  Simon,  who  was  betrayed  by  a  deserter  from  the  Ilnzzars  that  went  in  and 
gave  notice  of  his  approaching  his  parallel. 

nth  ^  gth^ — \Vas  employed  in  completing  our  parallel,  finishing  the  redoubts  in 
them,  and  establishing  Batteries 

9th. — About  3  o'clock  P.M.  the  French  opened  a  battery  on  our  extreme  left,  of 
4  sixteen  pounders,  and  six  Mortars  &  Howitzers — and  at  five  o'clock  an  American 
battery  of  six  18s  &  24s  four  Mortars  &  2  Howitzers  began  to  play  from  the  extrem- 
tiy  of  our  right, — both  with  good  effect  as  they  compelled  the  enemy  to  withdraw 
from  their  Ambrazures  the  Pieces  which  had  previously  kept  up  a  constant  firing 

10th. — The  French  opened  two  batteries  on  the  left  of  our  front  parallel,  one 
of  6  twenty -four  pounders,  and  2  sixteens  with  6  Mortars  &  Howitzers,  the  other 
of  4  sixteen  pounders.  And  the  Americans  two  batteries  between  these  last  men 
tioned  and  the  one  on  our  extreme  right  the  left  of  which  containing  4  eighteen 
pounders,  the  other  two  Mortars, — 

The  whole  of  the  batteries  kept  an  incessant  fire,  the  Cannon  at  the  Ambra 
zures  of  the  enemy,  with  a  view  to  destroy  them,  the  shells  into  the  enemy's  works 
where  by  the  information  of  deserters  they  did  much  execution. 

The  French  battery  on  the  left,  by  red  hot  shot,  set  fire  to  (in  the  course  of 
the  night)  the  Charon  frigate  &  3  large  Transports  which  were  entirely  consumed. 

11th. — The  French  opened  two  other  batteries  on  the  left  of  the  parallel  each 
consisting  of  3  twenty-four  pounders — ,  these  were  also  employed  in  demolishing 
the  Ambrazures  of  the  enemy's  works  «fc  advance  Redoubt. 

Two  Gentlemen,  a  Major  Granchier  &  Capt.  DAvilier  being  sent  by  Admiral  de 
Grasse  to  reconnoiter  the  enemy's  water  defences,  and  state  of  the  river  at  and  near 
York,  seemed  favorably  disposed  to  adopt  the  measure  which  had  been  strongly- 
urged  of  bringing  ships  above  the  Town  &  made  representations  accordingly  to  the 
Count  de  Grasse. — 

12th. — Began  our  second  parallel  within  ab'  300  yards  (and  in  some  places 
less)  of  the  enemy's  line,  and  got  it  so  well  advanced  in  the  course  of  the  night 
as  to  cover  the  men  before  morning.  This  business  was  conducted  with  the  same 
secrecy  as  the  former  &  undertaken  so  much  sooner  than  the  enemy  expected  (we 
should  commence  a  second  parallel)  that  they  did  not  by  their  conduct  &  mode  of 


168 


APPENDIX. 


firing,  appear  to  have  had  any  suspicion  of  our  working  parties  till  daylight  dis 
covered  them  to  their  Picket;  nor  did  they  much  annoy  the  Trenches  in  the  course 
of  this  day  the  parallel  being  opened  last  night  from  the  ravine  in  front,  and  on 
the  right  flank  of  the  enemy  till  it  came  near  to  the  intersection  of  the  line  of  fire 
from  the  American  4  Gun  Battery  to  the  enemy's  advanced  redoubt  on  their  left, 
the  French  Batteries  fired  over  the  second  parallel. 

13th. — The  fire  of  the  enemy  this  night  became  brisk,  both  from  their  cannon 
and  Royals,  and  more  injurious  to  us  than  it  had  been  ;  several  men  being  killed 
and  many  wounded  in  the  Trenches,  but  the  works  were  not  in  the  smallest  de 
gree  retarded  by  it ;  our  batteries  were  began  in  the  course  of  the  night  and  a 
good  deal  advanced. 

14th. — The  day  was  spent  in  completing  our  parallel  and  maturing  the  Bat 
teries  of  the  second  parallel,  the  old  batteries  were  principally  directed  against  the 
abettis  &  salient  angles  of  the  enemy's  advanced  redoubt,  on  their  extreme  right 
and  left  to  prepare  them  for  the  intended  assault  for  which  the  necessary  disposi 
tions  were  made  for  attacking  the  two  on  the  left — and,  at  half  after  six  in  the 
evening  both  were  carried,  that  on  their  left  (or  the  Bank  of  the  river)  by  the 
Americans  and  the  other  by  the  French  Troops.  The  Baron  Viominel  commanded 
the  left  attack,  &  the  Marqs  de  la  Fayette  the  right  on  which  the  light  infantry 
were  employed.  In  the  left  redoubt  (assaulted  by  the  Americans)  there  were  ab1 
45  men  under  the  command  of  a  Major  Campbell :  of  which  the  Major,  a  Capt., 
and  Ensign,  with  17  men  were  made  Prisoners.  But  few  were  killed  on  the  part 
of  the  enemy  &  the  remainder  of  the  Garrison  escaped.  The  right  redoubt  at 
tacked  by  the  French  consisted  of  ab'  120  men  commanded  by  a  Lieutenant  Col° — 
of  these  18  were  killed,  &  42  taken  Prisoners;  among  the  Prisoners  were  a  Oapt. 
and  two  Lieutenants.  The  bravery  exhibited  by  the  attacking  Troops  was  emu 
lous  and  praiseworthy  ;•  few  cases  have  exhibited  stronger  proofs  of  intrepidity  cool 
ness  <fe  firmness  than  were  shown  upon  this  occasion.  The  following  is  our  loss 
in  these  attacks,  and  since  the  Investiture  of  York 


PERIODS. 

AMERICAN. 

TOTAL. 

KILLED. 

WOUNDED. 

i 

"u 

O 
U 

J 

i- 
A 

H. 
• 
O 

-• 

W 

I 

g 

* 

u.' 
43 

O 

\ 

V 

TP 

a, 

- 
O 

w 

*t 

z 
'3 

1? 
1 

C*° 

«8 

K 

From  yc  Invest'  to  opens  1st  para  I1    ..  . 

i 

1 

4 
2 

8 
6 
14 

28 

14 

8 
22 
44 

To  the  opening  of  the  2nd  par 

To  the  Storm  on  the  14th  

1 

fi 

1 

At  the  Storm  

8 

•2 

1 

2 

1 

1 

1 

Total  

i 

1 

1 

20 

2 

I 

8 

1 

1 

1 

56 

88 

The  loss  of  the  French  from  the  Investiture  to  the  assault  of  the  Redoubts 
inclusive,  is  as  follows,  viz. — 


APPENDIX.  169 

Officers  Killed 2 

Wounded 7 ') 

Soldiers  Killed 50 

Wounded 127 17_7 

Total 180 

15th. — Busily  employed  in  getting  the  Batteries  of  the  second  parallel  com 
pleted,  and  fixing  on  new  ones  contiguous  to  the  Redoubts  which  were  taken  last 
night, — placed  two  Howitzers  in  each  of  the  captured  redoubt  wch  were  opened 
upon  the  enemy  about  5  o'clock  in  the  afternoon. 

16th. — About  4  o'clock  this  morning  the  enemy  made  a  Sortie  upon  our  second 
parallel  and  spiked  four  French  pieces  of  Artillery  and  two  of  ours,  but  the  guards 
of  the  Trenches  advancing  quickly  upon  them  they  retreated  precipitately.  The 
Sally  being  made  upon  that  part  of  the  parallel  which  was  guarded  by  the  French 
Troops;  they  lost  an  Officer  &  12  men  killed  and  ten  Officers  taken  prisoners. 
— The  American  loss  was  one  Sergeant  of  Artillery  (in  the  American  battery) 
wounded  —  The  enemy,  it  is  said,  left  10  dead  and  lost  3  Prisoners.  About  4 
o'clock  this  afternoon  the  French  opened  two  Batteries  of  2  24s  &  four  16s  each. 
— 3  pieces  from  the  American  grand  battery  were  also  opened,  the  others  not 
being  ready. 

17th. — The  French  opened  another  Battery  of  four  24s  &  two  16s  and  a  Mortar 
Battery  of  10  Mortars  and  two  Howitzers.  The  American  grand  Battery  consist 
ing  of  12  twenty -four  and  eighteen  pre  4  Mortars  and  two  Howitzers.  About  ten 
oclock  the  enemy  beat  a  parley,  and  Lord  Cornwallis  proposed  a  cessation  of  hos 
tilities  for  24  hours,  that  commissioners  might'  meet  at  the  house  of  a  Mr.  Moore 
(in  the  rear  of  our  first  parallel)  to  settle  terms  for  the  surrender  of  the  Posts  of 
York  and  Gloucester.  To  this  he  was  answered,  that  a  desire  to  spare  the  further 
effusion  of  Blood  would  readily  incline  me  to  treat  of  the  surrender  of  the  above 
posts,  but  previous  to  the  meeting  of  the  commissioners,  I  wish  to  have  his  propo 
sal  in  writing  and  for  this  purpose  would  grant  a  cessation  of  hostilities  two  hours. 
Within  which  time  lie  sent  out  a  letter  with  such  proposals  (tho.  some  of  them 
were  inadmissible)  as  led  rne  to  believe  that  there  would  be  no  great  difficulty  in 
fixing  the  terms  ;  accordingly  hostilities  were  suspended  for  the  night  &  I  pro 
posed  my  own  terms  to  which  if  he  agreed,  commissioners  were  to  meet  to  digest 
them  into  form. 

18th. — The  commissioners  met  accordingly,  but  the  business  was  so  procrasti 
nated  by  those  on  their  side  (a  Col°  Dundas  &  Majr  Ross)  that  CoP  Laurens  &  the 
Viscount  De  Noailles  who  were  appointed  on  our  part  could  do  no  more  than 
make  the  rough  draft  of  the  articles  which  were  to  be  submitted  for  Lord  Corn 
wallis'  consideration. 

19th. — In  the  morning  early  I  had  them  copied  and  sent  word  to  Lord  Corn 
wallis  that  I  expected  to  have  them  signed  at  11  o'clock,  and  that  the  Garrison 
would  march  out  at  two  o'clock — both  of  which  were  accordingly  done ;  two  re- 


170  APPENDIX. 

doubts  on  the  enemy's  left  being  possessed  (the  one  by  a  detachment  of  French 
Grenadiers,  &  the  other  by  American  Infantry)  with  orders  to  prevent  all  inter 
course  between  the  Army  &  Country  and  the  Town,  while  Officers  in  the  several 
departments  were  employed  in  taking  acct.  of  the  public  stores  &c* — 

20th. — Winchester  and  Fort  Frederick  in  Maryland  being  the  places  destined 
for  the  reception  of  the  prisoners  they  were  to  have  commenced  their  march 
accordingly  this  day,  but  were  prevented  by  the  Commissary  of  Prisoners  not 
having  completed  his  accounts  of  them  &  taken  the  Paroles  of  the  Officers. 


III. — Diary  of  the  March  from  the  Hudson  to  Yorktoivn,  and  Return,  by  Lieu 
tenant  Reuben  Sanderson,  Fifth  Connecticut  Continental  Line,  on  Duty  ivith 
ScammelFs  Light  Infantry  Corps.1 

18th  July. — I  joined  Col°  Scammell's  Detachment  near  Dobb's  fcrrv. 

21st. — Marched  to  Morisseney — the  night  of  the  23rd  returned.  The  night  of 
the  29th  the  Detachment  marched  to  Philip's  as  a  cover  for  the  forraging  Party 
from  the  main  army. 

Aug1  18th. — Marched  from  Dobb's  Ferry — the  night  of  the  19th  crossed  King's 
Ferry — Encamped  at  Kakeat. 

25th.  —  Marched  from  Kakeat  to  Paramus.  —  26,  March*1  to  2nd  River.  —  27th 
March*  to  Springfield.— 29th  March11  to  Brunswick.— 30th  Marched  to  Princetown.— 
31st  March'1  to  Trenton. — 1st  Septr  Crosed  the  Delaware,  march*1  17  miles,  encampd 
at  Lower  Doublan  twelve  miles  from  Philadelphia. — 2nd  Marched  throw1'  Philadel 
phia  about  five  miles,  encamped  near  the  Schoelkill. —  3rd,  March*1  10  miles — en 
camp*1  three  miles  from  Chester.  Seven  men  Disertcd  from  Capt  Comstock's  Com 
pany — 4th,  Marched  through  Chester,  through  Brandywine,  through  Wilmington — 
encamp*1  one  mile  from  Wilmington,  which  was  about  twenty  miles  we  marched 
the  day. 

5th,  Marched  8  miles — marched  one  mile  through  Christcen  where  the  Park  of 
Artillery  Landed  the  day  before — Drawd  one  day's  Provision  and  cooked  the  Same 
— Prime  (?)  Desertd.  Marched  4  o'clock  about  five  miles — encamped  for  the  night. 
— 6,  Marched  to  the  Head  of  Elk,  10  miles.  Lay  till  the  9,  then  Marched  to  Ches- 
ipick  Bay,  3  miles. — the  tenth,  embarked.  The  eleventh,  waid  anchor,  saild  about 
ten  Miles. — the  12,  waid  anchor,  sailed  about  70  miles  which  brought  us  to  An- 
napilous. 

We  lay  at  AnnapHous  till  the  15th.  Then  the  whole  fleet  fell  down  about  two 
miles.  —  the  16,  we  made  sail  with  very  little  wind  —  sailed  about  thirty  miles. 
Came  to  anchor  off  Pople  point. — The  17,  about  the  rising  of  the  Sun,  waid  an 
chor,  sailed  about  35  (?)  miles,  came  to  Anchor  off  the  Potomock. — the  18th  came 
to  Sayl  about  12  o'clock  with  a  strong  wind. — the  19th,  about  8  o'clock  we  made 

1  Original  in  the  writer's  possession. 


APPENDIX.  171 

York  river  which  was  about  80  miles — the  wind  died  away — the  fleet  came  to  an 
chor  till  about  12  o'clock,  then  waid  anchor,  and  a  little  before  the  setting  of  the 
Sun,  made  James  river — Came  to  anchor  before  the  mouth  of  the  river.  The  20th, 
about  the  rising  of  the  Sun  waid  anchor — made  up  the  river  very  little — came 
to  anchor  off  Williamsburgh — Disembarked  in  the  Evening — encamped  near  the 
Shore.  The  24,  Marchd  about  a  mile  through  Williamsburg — encamped. 

The  28,  Marched  within  two  miles  of  York — Encamped. — 29,  Marched  about 
one  mile — lay  in  fair  view  of  the  enemy.  Recd  a  few  field  piece  shot — we  returned 
same  to  them.  At  Evening  encamp'1  within  Cannon  shot  of  the  Enemies  works — 
Rested  unmolested,  the  night.  The  morning  of  the  30th  we  found  the  Enemy  had 
avacquated  their  outlines.  Col°  Scammell  was  taken  a  reconnoitring  the  abandd 
works.  About  10  o'clock  we  took  possession  of  them  and  Continued  there  that 
day.  At  night  broke  ground  within  700  yards  of  York.  The  enemy  in  the  morn 
ing  began  firing  Cannon  shot  and  Continued  the  Day — kill11  two  men — kept  up 
the  fire,  the  night. 

Ocf  2n<1,  fired  more  frequent  than  the  day  before — the  evening,  killed  four  of 
Gen1  Muhlenberg's  men — kept  a  Constant  Cannonade  the  night.  The  3rd  kept  up 
the  Cannonade  till  night,  then  sceast  a  little,  (fired  very  little  the  4th.  The  night 
of  the  4th  fired  very  brieff). — The  3rd,  Tarlton  made  an  axcurtion  cross  the  river 
upon  the  Dks  Leg"  [Duke  Lauzun's  Legion] — the  D.  repulsd  him  with  the  loss  of 
three  men.  Tarlton  got  wounded — had  about  50  officers  and  soldiers  killed  and 
wounded,  most  the  former. — The  5,  Col°  Scammell's  Reg*  went  on  fatigue — was 
called  off  about  one  o'clock.  The  enemy  kept  up  their  firing  of  Cannon — fired 
very  brisk.  The  6th,  Col°  Scammell  Died. — The  6,  was  relieved  and  moved  our 
encampment.  The  night  of  the  6th  we  hove  up  a  Parallel  line  from  right  to  left 
of  the  enemies  works  without  any  resistance  from  the  Enemy — in  the  evening  they 
gave  us  a  few  shot. — the  night  of  the  7th  we  formd  an  Eight  Gun  battery  for  Eigh 
teen  lbrs.  The  8th  we  were  reld — moved  our  encampment.  The  night  of  the  8th 
moved  Cannon  into  the  works — the  9th  at  4  o'clock  opend  our  batteries — kept  up 
the  firing  the  night.  The  morning  of  the  10,  a  most  severe  cannonade  from  our 
batteries  and  Continued  all  day.  Gen1  M.'s  Division  went  on  duty — the  Cannon 
ade  was  kept  up — burnt  two  ships  of  the  Enemies. — the  11,  about  one  o'clock 
was  reld. 

The  night  of  the  11th  we  hove  up  the  2nd  Parallel  Line — kept  up  a  constant 
Cannonade  and  bombard — we  had  some  men  killed,  and  some  wounded.  The  12th, 
a  constant  Cannonade  kept  up  on  both  sides  which  Continued  the  night.  The 
13th,  went  on  duty  at  the  lines — a  very  heavy  Cannonade  kept  up — we  had  some 
men  killed  and  a  number  wounded. — The  14th,  we  was  reld.  The  night  of  the 
14th  we  stormed  a  Redoubt  of  the  Enemies  which  was  on  their  left — the  French 
stormed  another  a  little  Distance  of  that  with  the  loss  of  a  very  few  men,  and 
Continued  the  night  in  forwarding  2nd  Line.  The  15th  continued  in  Camp — the 
16th  went  on  Duty  at  the  Lines.  The  17th  was  reld— had  a  flag  from  the  Enemy 


172  APPENDIX. 

and  Hostilities  scast. — The  18th  we  prepared  ourselves  for  the  reception  of  Corn- 
walls. — the  19th,  his  Army  rnarchd  out,  grounded  their  arms  and  marchd  back. 

The  20,  I  went  into  York,  reconnoitrd  the  Town,  and  the  Distinction  made  by 
our  Shells  and  balls. — 21,  went  on  Duty  in  Town.  The  enemy  marched  out.  Co- 
lecting  Tents. — the  22nd,  Colecting  Nigars  till  5  o'clock,  then  was  Reld. — 23d,  Con 
tinued  in  Camp. — 24,  Continued  in  Camp. — 25,  Continued  in  Camp. — 26,  Contin 
ued  in  Camp. — 27,  Continued  in  Camp. — 28,  Attended  divine  Service  in  the  fore 
noon  ;  in  the  afternoon  went  into  York.  A  fatigue  party  was  sent  from  Col°  Law- 
rens  Battalion  into  York. — 29th,  Went  on  Guard  in  Town ;  had  the  left  Redoubt 
Guard. — the  30th  was  Relieved. — the  31,  Continued  in  Camp. — 1  Novr  went  on 
Fatigue  in  York  a  loding  Cannon  and  shells  aboard  shipping — 4  o'clock  two  shells 
bust  and  kild  two  soldiers,  wounded  two  or  three  others.— 2nd,  went  in  York,  pro 
cured  casks  for  water. — 3,  went  in  York  for  a  walk. 

4th. — Embarked  on  bord  the  Frigate  Dilligante. — the  evening  of  the  5,  made 
Sail;  about  3  o'clock  ran  a  ground.  —  the  6,  about  12  o'clock  got  off;  about  5 
waid  anchor,  ran  out  of  York  river,  Came  to  anchor. — the  7th,  about  7  o'clock  waid 
anchor. — the  15th,  Debarked  at  the  mouth  of  the  Patomac  with  Capt.  Betts  and 
a  Detachment  of  one  hundred  men.  —  the  16,  marched  10  miles  in  St.  Maris 
County,  put  up  for  the  night. — the  17,  about  4  o'clock  marched  7  miles.  Con 
tinued  till  the  19th,  then  marched  12  miles  to  Mr.  Abies;  about  12  o'clock  Ens" 
Foster  was  sent  with  a  party  of  Sick  to  the  water  to  go  to  Annapolous. — 20, 
Crossed  Patomack — marched  14  miles  to  Col°  Sumerwills. — 21st,  Marched  16  miles 
to  Huntington. — 22nd,  Marched  19  miles  to  Hering  Creek  Church  in  Anarandel 
County. — 23,  Marched  20  miles  to  Annapolous  —  put  up  16  of  our  men  in  the 
hospital. — 24,  Ens"  Foster  Came  up  with  his  men ;  he  had  two  died  on  his  way. 
3  o'clock  we  marched  leaving  Lieut.  Jackson  with  51  men;  marched  10  miles. — 
25,  Marched  8  Miles,  put  up  by  reason  of  the  rain  (?). — 26,  Marched  8  miles. 
Crossed  Patomac  ferry,  marched  two  miles  to  Baltomore,  marched  6  miles  from 
town. — 27,  marched  25  miles. — 28,  very  rainy,  remained  in  our  Quarters. — 29, 
marched  25  miles  to  the  Head  of  Elk,  found  a  number  of  our  Soldiers  sick  with 
the  small  pox. — 30,  Continued  in  town. 

1st  Decr  went  a  guning,  killed  8  squirrals.  —  2,  being  Sunday  Continued  in 
Quarters. — 3rd,  went  a  guning,  killed  10  squirles. — 4th,  Continued  in  town — the 
evening,  Col°  Olney  arrived.  —  5,  went  a  guning. —  6,  Continued  in  Quarters. 
Corp1  Vose  came  up  from  Lt.  Jackson,  informed  us  that  6  of  the  men  had  died. — 
7,  Cap*  Betts  marched  up  the  men,  left  me. — 8,  I  marched  with  the  Rhode  Island 
Reg'  12  miles  to  Christian. — 9,  Marched  8  miles  to  Wmton. — 10,  Continued  in 
town  by  reason  of  rain. — 11,  Marched  20  miles  to  Diarby. — 12,  Marched  7  miles 
to  Philadelphia. — 13,  Marched  15  miles  to  Bucks  County. — 14,  Marched  19  miles 
to  Maidenhead.  — 15,  Marched  23  miles  to  Sumersets  County.  — 16,  Marched 
through  Brownswick  to  Baskingridge,  which  was  24  miles. — 17,  Marched  9  miles 
to  Morristown.  Cap4  Betts  marched  on  with  the  party  ;  left  me  with  the  Baggage 


APPENDIX.  173 

to  procure  a  waggon  to  transport  it  to  King's  ferry. — 18,  Continued  in  town. — 19, 
Marched  6  miles  to  Pasipany. — 20,  Marched  16  miles  to  Pumpton. — 21,  Marched 
26  miles  to  Havcrstraw. — 22,  Marched  4  miles  to  Kings  Ferry,  crossd,  marched  16 
miles  to  the  Connecticut  huts  in  the  highlands. 


IV. — Letter  from  Lieut. -colonel  William  S.  Smith,  A.D.C.,  to  Col.  Samuel  B. 
Webb,  Third  Connecticut  Continental  Line. 

Head  Qrs,  Head  of  Elk  Sept  7th  1781. 

DEAR  COLOI, — The  long  expected  fleet  from  franco  is  at  last  arrived,  they 
made  their  appearance  in  the  Cheasapeak  the  26th  nit  with  28  ships  of  the  Line 
and  5000  Land  troops  which  have  joined  the  Marquis  and  we  hope  effectually  pre 
vented  Cornxvallis's  retreat  to  the  Carolinas.  He  observes  this  and  is  fortifying 
himself  with  the  greatest  industry.  We  shall  look  as  stern  as  the  grave  upon  him 
about  the  14th  his  position  is  at  York  &  Gloster  in  Virginia  on  the  South  and 
North  margin  of  York  River — the  fleet  on  their  passage  fell  in  with  and  captured 
a  Packet  from  Charles  Town  bound  to  Europe  on  board  of  which  was  Lord  Raw- 
don  the  plunderer  of  the  South,  returning  to  bask  in  the  sunshine  of  Ministerial 
favours  for  butchering  the  patriotic  Sons  of  America. 

Inclosed  I  send  you  a  Letter  which  I  wish  you  to  forward.  Remember  me  to 
Mrs  Webb  and  Miss  Ileth  &  believe  me  Dr  Sam1  your  friend  &c 

W"  T.  SMITH  &c. 
To  COL.  SAM1-  B.  WEBB. 

[Webb  MS.} 


V. — Letter  from  Major -William  Popham,  A.D.C.,  to  Gov.  Clinton,  of  New  York. 

Head  of  Elk  Sept  8th,  1781. 

SIR, — After  a  very  rapid  march  of  near  two  weeks,  attended  with  great  fatigue, 
we  at  length  are  collected  at  this  place,  both  french  and  Americans,  amounting  in 
the  whole  to  near  seven  thousand,  with  an  amazing  train  of  ordnance  and  military 
stores — The  light  corps  under  Scammell,  the  advance  of  the  french,  and  the  de 
tached  Corps  of  our  Army  will  embark  with  the  stores  &c  to-rnorrow  and  proceed 
by  water — the  remainder  of  the  Troops  will  move  by  Land,  at  least  as  far  as  Balti 
more.  The  Count  de  Grass  has  arrived  in  the  Bay  with  twenty-eight  sail  of  the 
line,  and  landed  a  considerable  Body  of  Troops  who  have  joined  the  Marquis  de 
la  Fayette  and  taken  post  in  the  rear  of  Cornwallis,  effectually  cutting  off  his 
Retreat,  as  his  whole  Force  does  not  consist  of  more  than  four  thousand  five  hun 
dred  effective  men,  who  are  entrenched  on  the  South  side  of  York  river  at  a  Town 
of  the  same  name — The  Gen1  left  camp  this  morning  on  his  rout  to  Baltimore 
where  a  cutter  is  ready  to  receive  him  —  Nothing  can  equal  the  Dispatch  with 
which  our  opperations  are  carrying  on,  insomuch  that  by  the  12th  inst  it  is  hoped 


174:  APPENDIX. 

we  shall  clear  out  from  this  Post, — and  it  is  computed  that  five  weeks  from  that 
date  will  compleat  the  grand  Design. 

This  day  will  be  famous  in  the  annals  of  History  for  being  the  first  in  which 
the  Troops  of  the  United  States  received  one  month's  Pay  in  Specie — all  the  civil 
and  military  staff  are  excluded — I  cannot  even  obtain  my  pay  as  Captain  in  the 
Line.  .  .  . 

It  is  extraordinary  that  notwithstanding  the  Fatigue  of  such  a  long  &  rapid 
March,  there  is  scarcely  a  sick  man  to  be  found — our  Provisions  are  good  in  their 
kind,  and  our  Supplies  regular — and  as  far  as  my  Judgment  will  enable  me  to 
determine,  our  Prospects  are  very  flattering. 

I  have  taken  the  Liberty  to  intrude  thus  far  on  your  Exce1'5  Patience  without 
any  apology,  hoping  it  may  not  be  disagreeable.  I  believe  the  Intelligence  it  con 
tains  may  be  depended  on,  as  I  have  been  particularly  carefull  in  collecting  it.  ... 

Present  my  best  respects  to  the  Family  &  believe  me  to  be,  Sir, 

Your  Excellency's  Most  Ob"  Serv* 

"W.    POPHAM. 
His  ExcLY  GovR  CLINTOX. 

\_Vol.  XIII.,  So.  3977,  Clinton  Papers,  Albany  State  Library.] 


VI. — Letter  from  Colonel  John  Lamb,  Second  Artillery,  to  Governor  Clinton. 

Camp  before  York  Town,  6th  Octobr,  1781. 

DEAR  SIR, —  .  .  .  On  the  approach  of  our  army  Cornwallis  abandoned  some 
detached  works  in  Front  of  the  Town,  and  retired  within  his  principal  works. 

This  night  the  Troops  (who  are  now  paraded  for  that  purpose)  will  begin  the 
first  Parallel  which  will  be  within  5  or  600  yards  of  the  Enemy's  works.  So  you 
may  depend  on  its  being  a  Xight  of  Business. 

As  the  greatest  part  of  our  ordnance  and  Stores  are  now  here,  we  shall  be  ready 
to  open  our  Batteries  in  a  day  or  two — when  I  flatter  myself,  we  shall  soon  be 
able  to  silence  those  of  the  Enemy  who  have  been  firing,  every  day,  at  the  works 
they  evacuated  (and  which  we  now  possess)  but  with  little  effect,  as  they  have  not 
Killed  more  than  20  men  since  the  army  took  its  present  position. 

I  am  sorry  to  inform  you,  that  the  worthy  Colonel  Scammell  was  wounded  and 
taken  Prisoner  on  Monday  last,  by  three  of  Tarleton's  Horse,  as  he  was  recon 
noitring  the  Enemy's  works.  He  is  Paroled  and  in  a  fair  way  to  recover. 

On  Tuesday  last  Tarleton  crossed  the  River  with  his  Regiment  and  a  Body  of 
Infantry  with  a  design  to  Forage.  They  were  attacked  by  the  Duke  de  Lau/un's 
Legion,  and  a  few  Militia,  who  defeated  and  pursued  them  to  the  Town  of  Glouces 
ter.  The  Enemy  had  Fifty  Men  Killed  and  wounded.  The  Duke's  Legion,  three 
Killed  and  eleven  wounded.  As  it  is  more  than  probable  (from  Circumstances) 
that  I  shall  end  my  career,  in  the  Course  of  this  siege — should  such  an  unlucky 
event  take  place,  I  must  request  the  favor  of  you  to  interest  yourself  in  behalf  of 


APPENDIX.  175 

my  little  Family,  that  they  may  have  Justice  done  them  by  the  Public  with  respect 
to  what  they  are  indebted  to  me.  .  .  . 

I  am  with  Every  Sentiment  of  Respect,  Dear  Sir, 

Your  Obedient  Servant, 

JOHN  LAMB. 

[Clinton  Papers,  Albany.} 


VII. — Letter  from  Lieut.- Colonel  Henry  Dearborn  to  Honorable  Meshech  Weare,  of 

New  Hampshire. 

Camp  before  York,  Octobr  11">  1781. 

gIR> — I  am  very  unhappy  that  the  fore  part  of  my  letter  is  on  so  disagreeable 
a  subject,  but  so  it  is.  our  good  friend  Col°  Scammell  is  no  more,  on  the  I1 
Ins'  as  officer  of  the  day  he  was  visiting  our  advanced  picquits  &  reconnoitering 
the  Enemies  works  when  a  small  party  of  the  their  horse  made  a  sudden  charge 
upon  him  &  after  making  him  prisoner  one  of  them  deliberately  shot  him,  &  after 
plundering  him  carried  him  into  Town,  next  day  he  was  sent  out  on  parole  for 
several  days  his  simtoms  appeered  favorable,  but  the  6th  Ins1  very  suddenly  he 
altered  for  the  wors,  &  at  5  oclock  P.M.  he  expired,  no  officer  of  Col°  Scammell's 
rank  that  has  been  killed  or  died  in  the  Army  has  been  more,  if  so  much,  lamented 
by  all  ranks  as  he  is,  the  New  Hampshire  line  is  remarkably  unfortunate  in  loosing 
our  best  officers. 

Our  Army  is  making  regular  approaches  to  the  Enemies  Works  our  works  are 
within  less  than  five  hundred  yards  of  their  main  works  &  I  expect  by  to  morrow 
morning  we  shall  be  much  nearer,  their  resistence  has  not  been  great  as  yet ; — 
from  what  we  can  hear  from  them  their  principle  dependence  is  on  a  superior 
Fleet,  which  I  think  they  must  fail  in;  Count  De  Grasses  Fleet  consists  of  30 
ships  of  the  line  exclusive  of  a  considerable  number  of  other  ships  of  force ;  if 
we  should  succeed  in  taking  Cora  Wallis,  &  Gen1  Green  continues  successful  in 
Carolina,  it  will  have  a  great  tendency  to  put  an  end  to  this  distressing  war,  & 
give  liberty  to  us  in  the  field  once  more  to  become  peacible  citizens. 

I  have  the  honor  to  be  with  the  most  sincere  esteem  Your  honors 

Obed'  Hum"  Serv1 

HENRY  DEARBORN. 
HosBLE  M.  WEARE. 

IMS.,  Mass.  Hist.  Soc.] 


VIII. — Letter  from  Ptter  Elting  to  Colonel  Richard  Varick. 

Kingston  (N.  Y.)  7th  Nov.  1781. 

DEAR  BROTHER, —  ...  I  congratulate   you   on   the   Glorious   News   from   all 
Quarters,  <fe  Inperticular  on  the  Surender  of  Cornwallis,  I  am  in  Great  hopes  that 


176  APPENDIX. 

the  British  Fleet  had  another  Drobing.  It  was  Currently  Reported  when  I  left 
Jersies  that  they  Had  Returned  to  the  Hook  much  Sheterd,  It  would  Be  Needless 
to  mention  the  Great  News,  Lumination,  Rejoicings  &c  I  had  the  satisfaction  to 
partake  of  at  Philadelphia  as  it  has  since  all  Transpired.  .  .  . 

Remain  your  affectionate  Brother  <fc  Humble  Serv1 

PETER  ELTING. 
To  COL.  VARICK. 

[From  Tomlison  MS.,  N.  V.  Mere.  Lib.} 


IX. — Account  of  the  Surrender  by  Lieutenant-colonel  Harry  Lee.1 

At.twp  o'clock  in  the  evening  the  British  army,  led  by  General  O'llara,  marched 
out  of  its  lines  with  colors  cased,  and  drums  beating  a  British  march. 

The  author  was  present  at  this  ceremony ;  and  certainly  no  spectacle  could  be 
more  impressive  than  the  one  now  exhibited.  Valiant  troops  yielding  up  their 
arms  after  fighting  in  defence  of  a  cause  dear  to  them  (because  the  cause  of  their 
country),  under  a  leader  who,  throughout  the  war,  in  every  grade  and  in  every 
situation  to  which  he  had  been  called,  appeared  the  Hector  of  his  host.  Battle 
after  battle  had  he  fought ;  climate  after  climate  had  he  endured ;  towns  had 
yielded  to  his  mandate,  posts  were  abandoned  at  his  approach ;  armies  were  con 
quered  by  his  prowess ;  one  nearly  .exterminated,  another  chased  from  the  con 
fines  of  South  Carolina  beyond  the  Dan  into  Virginia,  and  a  third  severely  chas 
tised  in  that  State  on  the  shores  of  James  River.  But  here  even  he,  in  the  midst 
of  his  splendid  career,  found  his  conqueror. 

~f-  The  road  through  which  they  marched  was  lined  with  spectators,  French  and 
American.  On  one  side  the  commander -in -chief,  surrounded  by  his  suite  and 
the  American  staff,  took  his  station  ;  on  the  other  side,  opposite  to  him,  was  the 
Count  de  Rochambeau,  in  like  manner  attended.  The  captive  army  approached, 
moving  slowly  in  column  with  grace  and  precision.  Universal  silence  was  ob 
served  amid  the  vast  concourse,  and  the  utmost  decency  prevailed  :  exhibiting 
in  demeanor  an  awful  sense  of  the  vicissitudes  of  human  life,  mingled  with  com 
miseration  for  the  unhappy.  The  head  of  the  column  approached  the  command- 
er-in-chicf ;  O'llara,  mistaking  the  circle,  turned  to  that  on  his  left,  for  the  pur 
pose  of  paying  his  respects  to  the  commander -in -chief,  and  requesting  further 
orders;  when,  quickly  discovering  his  error,  with  much  embarrassment  in  his 
countenance  he  flew  across  the  road,  and,  advancing  up  to  Washington,  asked 
pardon  for  his  mistake,  apologized  for  the  absence  of  Lord  Cornwallis,  and  beg 
ged  to  know  his  further  pleasure.  The  General,  feeling  his  embarrassment,  re 
lieved  it  by  referring  him  with  much  politeness  to  General  Lincoln  for  his 
government. ^Returning  to  the  head  of  the  column,  it  again  moved  under  the 
guidance  of  Lincoln  to  the  field  selected  for  the  conclusion  of  the  ceremony. 

1  Lee's  "Memoirs,"  vol.  ii.,  pp.  360-62. 

•4 


APPENDIX.  177 

Every  eye  was  turned,  searching  for  the  British  commander-  in  -chief,  anx 
ious  to  look  at  that  man,  heretofore  so  much  the  object  of  their  dread.  All 
were  disappointed.  Cornwallis  held  himself  back  from  the  humiliating  scene; 
obeying  sensations  which  his  great  character  ought  to  have  stifled.  He  had 
been  unfortunate,  not  from  any  false  step  or  deficiency  of  exertion  on  his  part, 
but  from  the  infatuated  policy  of  his  superior,  and  the  united  power  of  his  en 
emy,  brought  to  bear  upon  him  alone.^  There  was  nothing  with  which  he  could 
reproach  himself;  there  was  nothing  with  which  he  could  reproach  his  brave 
and  faithful  army :  why  not,  then,  appear  at  its  head  in  the  day  of  misfortune, 
as  he  had  always  done  in  the  day  of  triumph  ?  The  British  general  in  this 
instance  deviated  from  his  usual  line  of  conduct,  dimming  the  splendor  of  his 
long  and  brilliant  career. 

The  post  of  Gloucester,  falling  with  that  of  York,  was  delivered  up  on  the 
same  day  by  Lieutenant -colonel  Tarlcton,  who  had  succeeded  to  the  command 
on  the  transfer  of  Lieutenant -colonel  Dundas  to  the  more  important  duties  as 
signed  to  him  in  the  defencer7rf  York.  Previous  to  the  surrender,  Tarleton 
waited  upon  General  Choisy,  and  communicated  to  that  officer  his  apprehen 
sions  for  his  personal  safety  if  put  at  the  disposal  of  the  American  militia.  This 
conference  was  sought  for  the  purpose  of  inducing  an  arrangement  which  should 
shield  him  from  the  vengeance  of  the  inhabitants.  General  Choisy  did  not  hesi 
tate  a  moment  in  gratifying  the  wishes  of  Tarleton.  The  Legion  of  Lauzun  and 
the  corps  of  Mercer  were  selected  by  the  general  to  receive  the  submitting  en 
emy,  while  the  residue  of  the  allied  detachment  was  held  back  in  camp.  As 
soon  as  the  ceremony  of  surrender  was  performed,  Lieutenant-colonel  Hugo,  of 
the  Legion  of  Mercer,  with  his  militia  and  grenadiers,  took  possession  of  the 
redoubts,  and  protected  the  hostile  garrison  from  those  outrages  so  seriously, 
though  unwarrantably,  anticipated  by  the  British  commandant.  It  would  have 
been  very  satisfactory  to  have  been  enabled  to  give  the  reasons  which  induced 
this  communication  from  Lieutenant-colonel  Tarleton,  but  Choisy  did  not  go  into 
the  inquiry,  and  they  remain  unascertained. 


X. — Description  of  the  Surrender  by  Colonel  Fontaine,  Virginia  Militia. 

Richmond,  Oct.  26th,  1781. 

DEAR  SIR, — Major  Pcnn  gives  me  an  opportunity,  the  first  I  have  met  with 
since  the  glorious  event,  of  congratulating  you  on  the  surrender  of  York,  which  I 
do  with  all  imaginable  cordiality.  I  had  the  happiness  to  see  that  British  army 
which  so  lately  spread  dismay  and  desolation  through  all  our  country,  march  forth 
on  the  20th  inst.  [19th]  at  3  o'clock  through  our  whole  army,  drawn  up  in  two  lines 
about  20  yards  distance  and  return  disrobed  of  all  their  terrors,  so  humbled  and  so 
struck  at  the  appearance  of  our  troops,  that  their  knees  seemed  to  tremble,  and 
you  could  not  sec  a  platoon  that  marched  in  any  order.  Such  a  noble  figure  did 

12 


178  APPENDIX. 

our  army  make,  that  I  scarce  know  which  drew  my  attention  most.  You  could 
not  have  heard  a  whisper  or  seen  the  least  motion  throughout  our  whole  line,  but 
every  countenance  was  erect,  and  expressed  a  serene  cheerfulness.  Cornwallis  pre 
tended  to  be  ill,  and  imposed  the  mortifying  duty  of  leading  forth  the  captives  on 
Gen.  O'Hara.  Their  own  officers  acknowledge  them  to  be  the  flower  of  the  Brit 
ish  troops,  but  I  do  not  think  they  at  all  exceeded  in  appearance  our  own  or  the 
French.  The  latter,  you  may  be  assured,  are  very  different  from  the  ideas  formerly 
inculcated  in  us  of  a  people  living  on  frogs  and  coarse  vegetables.  Finer  troops  I 
never  saw.  His  Lordship's  defence  I  think  was  rather  feeble.  His  surrender  was 
eight  or  ten  days  sooner  than  the  most  sanguine  expected,  though  his  force  and 
resources  were  much  greater  than  we  conceived. 

[Va.  Historical  Register  (1849),  vol.  ii.,  p.  34.] 


XI. —  Washington's  Congratulatory  Order  to  the  Allied  Army.1 

"After  Orders,  20th  October,  1781. 

The  General  congratulates  the  army  upon  the  glorious  event  of  yesterday.  The 
generous  proofs  which  his  Most  Christian  Majesty  has  given  of  his  attachment  to 
the  cause  of  America  must  force  conviction  on  the  minds  of  the  most  deceived 
among  the  enemy  relative  to  the  good  consequences  of  the  alliance,  and  inspire 
every  citizen  of  these  States  with  sentiments  of  the  most  unalterable  gratitude. 
His  fleet,  the  most  numerous  and  powerful  that  ever  appeared  in  these  seas,  com 
manded  by  an  admiral  whose  fortune  and  talents  insure  great  events — an  army  of 
the  most  admirable  composition,  both  in  officers  and  men,  are  the  pledges  of  his 
friendship  to  the  United  States,  and  their  co-operation  has  secured  us  the  present 
signal  success. 

The  General  on  this  occasion  entreats  his  Excellency  Count  de  Rochambeau  to 
accept  his  most  grateful  acknowledgments  for  his  counsels  at  all  times;  he  pre 
sents  his  warmest  thanks  to  the  Generals  Baron  de  Viomenil,  Chevalier  Chastellux, 
Marquis  de  Saint  Simon,  and  Count  de  Viomenil,  and  to  Brigadier -general  de 
Choisy  (who  had  a  separate  command),  for  the  illustrious  manner  in  which  they 
have  advanced  the  interests  of  the  common  cause.  He  requests  that  Count  de 
Rochambeau  will  be  pleased  to  communicate  to  the  army  under  his  immediate  com 
mand  the  high  sense  he  entertains  of  the  distinguished  merits  of  the  officers  and 
soldiers  of  every  corps,  and  that  he  will  present  in  his  name  to  the  regiments  of 
Agenois  and  Deuxponts  the  two  pieces  of  brass  ordnance  captured  by  them  (as  a 
testimony  of  their  gallantry)  in  storming  the  enemy's  redoubt  on  the  night  of  the 
14th  inst.,  when  officers  and  men  so  universally  vied  with  each  other  in  the  exercise 
of  every  soldierly  virtue. 

1  Lieutenant  Sanderson's  MS.  Diary.     Yorktown  Orderly  Book. 


APPENDIX.  179 

The  General's  thanks  to  each  individual  of  merit  would  comprehend  the  whole 
army,  but  he  thinks  himself  bound  by  affection,  duty,  and  gratitude,  to  express  his 
obligations  to  Major-generals  Lincoln,  Lafayette,  and  Steuben  for  dispositions  in 
the  trenches,  to  General  Du  Portail  and  Colonel  Carney  [Querenet?]  for  the  vigor 
and  knowledge  which  were  conspicuous  in  the  conduct  of  the  attacks,  and  to 
General  Knox  and  Colonel  d'Aboville  for  their  great  care,  attention,  and  fatigue  in 
bringing  forward  the  artillery  and  stores,  and  for  their  judicious  and  spirited  ar 
rangement  of  them  in  the  parallels.  He  requests  the  gentlemen  above  mentioned 
to  communicate  his  thanks  to  the  officers  and  soldiers  of  their  respective  commands. 
Ingratitude,  which  the  General  hopes  never  to  be  guilty  of,  would  be  conspicuous 
in  him  was  he  to  omit  thanking  in  the  warmest  terms  his  Excellency  Governor  Nel 
son  for  the  aid  he  has  received  from  him  and  from  the  militia  under  his  command, 
to  whose  activity,  emulation,  and  courage  much  applause  is  due.  The  greatness  of 
the  acquisition  will  be  an  ample  compensation  for  the  hardships  and  hazards  which 
they  encountered  with  so  much  patriotism  and  firmness. 

In  order  to  diffuse  the  general  joy  through  every  breast,  the  General  orders 
that  those  men,  belonging  to  the  army,  who  may  now  be  in  confinement  shall  be 
pardoned,  released,  and  join  their  respective  corps.  Divine  service  is  to  be  per 
formed  to-morrow  in  the  several  brigades  and  divisions.  The  commander-in-chief 
recommends  that  the  troops  not  on  duty  should  universally  attend  with  that  seri 
ousness  of  deportment  and  gratitude  of  heart  which  the  recognition  of  such  reiter 
ated  and  astonishing  interpositions  of  Providence  demand  of  us. 


nf  XII. — JExtract  from  WraxalVs  " Memoirs"  Describing  Reception  of  the  News  by 

the  Home  Cabinet. 

On  Sunday,  the  25th,  about  noon,  official  intelligence  of  the  surrender  of  the 
British  forces  at  Yorktown  arrived  from  Falmouth  at  Lord  George  Germaine's 
house  in  Pall-mall.  v  Lord  Walsingham,  who  previous  to  his  father  Sir  Wm  de 
Grey's  elevation  to  the  Peerage,  had  been  Under  Secretary  of  State  in  that  De 
partment  ;  and  who  was  elected  to  second  the  Address  in  the  House  of  Peers  on 
the  subsequent  Tuesday;  happened  to  be  there  when  the  messenger  brought  the 
news.  •£  Without  communicating  it  to  any  other  person,  Lord  George,  for  the  pur 
pose  of  despatch,  immediately  got  with  him  into  a  hackney-coach  and  drove  to 
Lord  Stormont's  residence  in  Portland  Place.  Having  imparted  to  him  the  disas 
trous  information  and  taken  him  into  the  carriage,  they  instantly  proceeded  to  the 
Chancellor's  house  in  Great  Rnssel  Street,  Bloomsbury,  whom  they  found  at  home. 
When,  after  a  short  consultation,  they  determined  to  lay  it  themselves  in  person 
before  Lord  North.  He  had  not  received  any  intimation  of  the  event  when  they 
arrived  at  his  door  in  Downing  Street  between  one  and  two  o'clock.  The  First 
Minister's  firmness  and  even  his  presence  of  mind  gave  way  for  a  time  under  this 
awful  disaster.  I  asked  Lord  George  afterward  how  he  took  the  communication 


180  APPENDIX. 

when  made  to  him  ?  "As  he  would  have  taken  a  ball  in  his  breast,"  replied  Lord 
George.  For  he  opened  his  arms  exclaiming  wildly  as  he  paced  up  and  down  the 
apartment,  during  a  few  minutes,  "  Oh  God  !  it  is  all  over !"  Words  which  he 
repeated  many  times,  under  emotions  of  the  deepest  agitation  and  distress.  * 

When  the  first  agitation  of  their  minds  had  subsided,  the  four  Ministers  dis 
cussed  the  question  whether  or  not  it  might  be  expedient  to  prorogue  Parliament 
for  a  few  days ;  but  as  scarcely  an  interval  of  forty-eight  hours  remained  before 
the  appointed  time  of  assembling;  and  as  many  members  of  both  Houses  were 
already  either  arrived  in  London,  or  on  the  road,  that  proposition  was  abandoned.* 
It  became  however,  indispensable  to  alter  and  almost  model  anew  the  King's 
Speech,  which  had  been  already  drawn  up,  and  completely  prepared  for  delivery 
from  the  Throne.  This  alteration  was,  therefore,  made  without  delay  ;  and  at  the 
same  time^Lord  General  Germain,  as  Secretary  for  the  American  Department,  sent 
off  a  despatch  to  His  Majesty  who  was  then  at  Kew,  acquainting  him  with  the 
melancholy  termination  of  Lord  Cornwallis'  expedition.  Some  hours  having 
elapsed,  before  these  different  but  necessary  acts  of  business  could  take  place,  the 
Ministers  separated,  and  Lord  George  Germain  repaired  to  his  Office  in  Whitehall. 
There  he  found  a  confirmation  of  the  intelligence,  which  arrived  about  two  hours 
after  the  first  communication  ;  having  been  transmitted  from  Dover,  to  which  place 
it  was  forwarded  from  Calais,  with  the  French  account  of  the  same  event.  * 

I  dined  on  that  day  at  Lord  George's.  .  .  .  Before  the  dinner  was  finished,  one 
of  his  servants  delivered  him  a  letter,  brought  back  by  the  messenger  who  had 
been  despatched  to  the  King.  Lord  George  opened  and  perused  it — then  looking 
at  Lord  Walsingham,  to  whom  he  exclusively  directed  his  observation,  "The  King 
writes,"  said  he,  "just  as  he  always  does,  except  that  I  observe  he  has  omitted  to 
mark  the  hour  and  the  minute  of  his  writing,  with  his  usual  precision." 

[By  Gennaine's  permission  Wraxall  read  the  account  of  the  surrender  aloud] 
while  the  company  listened  in  profound  silence.  We  then  discussed  its  contents 
as  affecting  the  Ministry,  the  Country,  and  the  War.  It  must  be  confessed  that 
they  were  calculated  to  diffuse  a  gloom  over  the  most  convivial  society,  and  that 
they  opened  a  wide  field  for  political  speculation. 

*  After  perusing  the  account  of  Lord  Cornwallis'  surrender  at  York  Town,  it 
was  impossible  for  all  present  not  to  feel  a  lively  curiosity  to  know  how  the  King 
had  received  the  intelligence ;  as  well  as  how  he  had  expressed  himself  in  his  note 
to  Lord  George  Germain  on  the  first  communication  of  so  painful  an  event.  He 
gratified  our  wish  by  reading  it  to  us,  observing  at  the  same  time  that  it  did  the 
highest  honor  to  His  Majesty's  fortitude,  firmness,  and  consistency  of  character. 
The  words  made  an  impression  on  my  memory,  which  the  lapse  of  more  than 
thirty  years  has  not  erased;  and  I  shall  here  commemorate  its  tenor  as  serving  to 
show  how  that  Prince  felt  and  wrote,  under  one  o^ljhc  most  afflicting,  as  well  as 
humiliating  occurrences  of  his  reign.  The  Billet  ran  nearly  to  this  effect.  "  I 
have  rec'd  with  sentiments  of  the  deepest  concern  the  communication  which  Lord 


APPENDIX.  181 

George  Germain  lias  made  me,  of  the  unfortunate  result  of  the  operations  in  Vir 
ginia.  I  particularly  lament  it  on  account  of  the  consequences  connected  with  it 
and  the  difficulties  which  it  may  produce  in  carrying  on  the  public  business,  or  in 
repairing  such  a  misfortune.  But  I  trust  that  neither  Lord  George  Germain  nor  any 
Member  of  the  Cabinet  will  suppose  that  it  makes  the  smallest  alteration  in  those 
principles  of  my  conduct,  which  have  directed  me  in  past  time,  and  which  will  always 
continue  to  animate  me  under  every  event,  in  the  prosecution  of  the  present  contest." 
Not  a  sentiment  of  despondency  or  of  despair  was  to  be  found  in  the  letter; 
the  very  handwriting  of  which  indicated  composure  of  mind.  Whatever  opinion 
we  may  entertain  relative  to  the  practicability  of  reducing  America  to  obedience 
by  force  of  arms  at  the  end  of  1781,  we  must  admit  that  no  Sovereign  could 
manifest  more  calmness,  dignity,  or  self-command,  than  George  the  Third  dis- 
played  in  this  reply. 

XIII. —  Cornwallis1  Report  of  the  Surrender. 
EARL  CORNWALLIS  TO  SIR  HENRY  CLINTON,  K.B.,  DATED  YORK  TOWN,  VIRGINIA,  OCT.  20™,  1781. 

SIR, — I  have  the  mortification  to  inform  your  excellency  that  I  have  been 
forced  to  give  up  the  posts  of  York  and  Gloucester,  and  to  surrender  the  troops 
under  my  command,  by  capitulation  on  the  19th  instant,  as  prisoners  of  war  to  the 
combined  forces  of  America  and  France. 

I  never  saw  this  post  in  a  very  favorable  light ;  but  when  I  found  I  was  to  be 
attacked  in  it,  in  so  unprepared  a  state,  by  so  powerful  an  army  and  artillery, 
nothing  but  the  hopes  of  relief  would  have  induced  me  to  attempt  its  defence ; 
for  I  would  either  have  endeavored  to  escape  to  New  York  by  rapid  marches  from 
the  Gloucester  side,  immediately  on  the  arrival  of  General  Washington's  troops  at 
Williamsburgh,  or,  I  would,  notwithstanding  the  disparity  of  numbers,  have  at 
tacked  them  in  the  open  field,  where  it  might  have  been  just  possible  that  fortune 
would  have  favored  the  gallantry  of  the  handful  of  troops  under  my  command. 
But,  being  assured  by  your  excellency's  letters  that  every  possible  means  would 
be  tried  by  the  navy  and  army  to  relieve  us,  I  could  not  think  myself  at  liberty 
to  venture  upon  either  of  those  desperate  attempts;  therefore,  after  remaining  for 
two  days  in  a  strong  position  in  front  of  this  place,  in  hopes  of  being  attacked, 
upon  observing  that  the  enemy  were  taking  measure  which  could  not  fail  of  turn 
ing  my  left  flank  in  a  short  time,  and  receiving  on  the  second  evening  your  letter 
of  the  24th  of  September,  that  the  relief  would  fail  about  the  5th  of  October,  I 
withdrew  within  the  works  on  the  night  of  the  29th  of  September,  hoping  by  the 
labor  and  firmness  of  the  soldiers  to  protect  the  defence  until  you  could  arrive. 
Everything  was  to  be  expected  from  the  spirit  of  the  troops ;  but  every  disadvan 
tage  attended  their  labor,  as  the  work  was  to  be  continued  under  the  enemy's  fire, 
and  our  stock  of  intrenching  tools,  which  did  not  much  exceed  four  hundred  when 
we  began  to  work  in  the  latter  end  of  August,  was  now  much  diminished. 


182  APPENDIX. 

The  enemy  broke  ground  on  the  night  of  the  30th,  and  constructed  on  that 
night,  and  the  two  following  days  and  nights,  two  redoubts,  which  with  some 
works  that  had  belonged  to  our  outward  position  occupied  a  gorge  between  two 
creeks  or  ravines,  which  come  from  the  river  on  each  side  of  the  town.  On  the 
night  of  the  6th  of  October  they  made  their  first  parallel,  extending  from  its  right 
on  the  river  to  a  deep  ravine  on  the  left  nearly  opposite  to  the  centre  of  this  place, 
and  embracing  our  whole  left,  at  the  distance  of  six  hundred  yards.  Having  per 
fected  this  parallel,  their  batteries  opened  on  the  evening  of  the  9th  against  our 
left;  and  other  batteries  fired  at  the  same  time  against  a  redoubt  over  a  creek 
upon  our  right,  and  defended  by  about  one  hundred  and  twenty  men  of  the  23d 
regiment  and  marines  who  maintained  that  post  with  uncommon  gallantry.  The 
fire  continued  incessant  from  heavy  cannon,  and  from  mortars  and  howitzers,  throw 
ing  shells  from  eight  to  sixteen  inches,  until  all  our  guns  on  the  left  were  silenced, 
our  work  much  damaged,  and  our  loss  of  men  considerable.  On  the  night  of  the 
llth  they  began  their  second  parallel,  about  three  hundred  yards  nearer  to  us. 
The  troops  being  much  weakened  by  sickness,  as  well  as  by  the  fire  of  the  be 
siegers,  and  observing  that  the  enemy  had  not  only  secured  their  flanks,  but  pro 
ceeded  in  every  respect  with  the  utmost  regularity  and  caution,  I  could  not  venture 
so  large  sorties  as  to  hope  from  them  any  considerable  effect ;  but  otherwise,  I  did 
everything  in  my  power  to  interrupt  their  work,  by  opening  new  embrasures  for 
guns,  and  keeping  up  a  constant  fire  with  all  the  howitzers  and  small  mortars  we 
could  man.  On  the  evening  of  the  14th  they  assaulted  and  carried  two  redoubts 
that  had  been  advanced  about  three  hundred  yards  for  the  purpose  of  delaying 
their  approaches  and  covering  our  left  flank,  and  during  the  night  included  them 
in  their  second  parallel,  on  which  they  continued  to  work  with  the  utmost  exer 
tion.  Being  perfectly  sensible  that  our  works  could  not  stand  many  hours  after 
the  opening  of  the  batteries  of  that  parallel,  we  not  only  continued  a  constant  fire 
with  all  our  mortars,  and  every  gun  that  could  be  brought  to  bear  on  it,  but  a  little 
before  daybreak,  on  the  morning  of  the  10th,  I  ordered  a  sortie  of  about  three 
hundred  and  fifty  men,  under  the  direction  of  Lieutenant-colonel  Abercrornbie,  to 
attack  two  batteries  which  appeared,  to  be  in  the  greatest  forwardness,  and  to  spike 
the  guns. 

A  detachment  of  guards  with  the  80th  company  of  grenadiers,  under  the  com 
mand  of  Lieutenant-colonel  Lake,  attacked  the  one  ;  and  one  of  light  infantry, 
under  the  command  of  Major  Armstrong,  attacked  the  other ;  and  both  succeeded, 
by  forcing  the  redoubts  that  covered  them,  spiking  eleven  guns  and  killing  or 
•wounding  about  one  hundred  of  the  French  troops  who  had  the  guard  of  that 
part  of  the  trenches,  and  with  little  loss  on  our  side.  The  action,  though  extremely 
honorable  to  the  officers  and  soldiers  who  executed  it,  proved  of  little  public  advan 
tage ;  for  the  cannon,  having  been  spiked  in  a  hurry,  were  soon  rendered  fit  for 
service  again ;  and  before  dark  the  whole  parallel  and  batteries  appeared  to  be 
nearly  complete.  At  this  time  we  knew  that  there  was  no  part  of  the  whole 


APPENDIX.  183 

front  attacked  on  which  we  could  throw  a  single  gun,  and  our  shells  were  nearly 
expended;  I  had  therefore  only  to  choose  between  preparing  to  surrender  next 
day,  or  endeavoring  to  get  off  with  the  greatest  part  of  the  troops  ;  and  I  deter 
mined  to  attempt  the  latter,  reflecting  that,  though  it  should  prove  unsuccessful 
in  its  immediate  object,  it  might  at  least  delay  the  enemy  in  the  prosecution  of 
further  enterprises.  Sixteen  large  boats  were  prepared,  and  upon  other  pretexts 
were  ordered  to  be  in  readiness  to  receive  troops  precisely  at  ten  o'clock :  with 
these  I  hoped  to  pass  the  infantry  during  the  night ;  abandoning  our  baggage,  and 
leaving  a  detachment  to  capitulate  for  the  towns-people,  and  the  sick  and  wounded ; 
on  which  subject  a  letter  was  ready  to  be  delivered  to  General  Washington.  After 
making  my  arrangements  with  the  utmost  secrecy,  the  light  infantry,  greatest  part 
of  the  guards,  and  part  of  the  23d  regiment  landed  at  Gloucester ;  but  at  this 
critical  moment,  the  weather,  from  being  moderate  and  calm,  changed  to  a  violent 
storm  of  wind  and  rain,  and  drove  all  the  boats,  some  of  which  had  troops  on 
board,  down  the  river.  It  was  soon  evident  that  the  intended  passage  was  im 
practicable  ;  and  the  absence  of  the  boats  rendered  it  equally  impossible  to  bring 
back  the  troops  that  had  passed,  which  I  had  ordered  about  two  in  the  morning. 
In  this  situation,  with  my  little  force  divided,  the  enemy's  batteries  opened  at  day 
break  :  The  passage  between  this  place  and  Gloucester  was  much  exposed,  but  the 
boats  having  now  returned,  they  were  ordered  to  bring  back  the  troops  that  had 
passed  during  the  night,  and  they  joined  in  the  forenoon  without  much  loss.  Our 
works  in  the  mean  time  were  going  to  ruin ;  and  not  having  been  able  to  strengthen 
them  by  abattis,  nor  in  any  other  manner  than  by  a  light  fraizing,  which  the  ene 
my's  artillery  were  demolishing  wherever  they  fired,  my  opinion  entirely  coincided 
with  that  of  the  engineer  and  principal  officers  of  the  army,  that  they  were  in 
many  places  assailable  in  the  forenoon,  and  that  by  the  continuance  of  the  same 
fire  for  a  few  hours  longer,  they  would  be  in  such  a  state  as  to  render  it  desperate, 
with  our  numbers,  to  attempt  to  maintain  them.  We  at  that  time  could  not  fire 
a  single  gun  ;  only  one  eight-inch  and  little  more  than  a  hundred  cohorn  shells 
remained ;  a  diversion  by  the  French  ships  of  war  that  lay  at  the  mouth  of  the 
York  liiver  was  to  bo  expected.  Our  numbers  had  been  diminished  by  the  enemy's 
fire,~brrt  particularly  by  sickness;  and  the  strength  and  spirit  of  those  in  the  works 
were  much  exhausted  by  the  fatigue  of  constant  watching  and  unremitting  duty. 
Under  all  these  circumstances,  I  thought  it  would  have  been  wanton  and  inhuman 
to  the  last  degree  to  sacrifice  the  lives  of  this  small  body  of  gallant  soldiers,  who 
had  ever  behaved  with  so  much  fidelity  and  courage,  by  exposing  them  to  an 
assault  which,  from  the  numbers  and  precautions  of  the  enemy,  could  not  fail  to 
succeed.  I  therefore  proposed  to  capitulate,  and  I  have  the  honor  to  enclose  to 
your  excellency  the  copy  of  the  correspondence  between  General  Washington  and 
me  on  that  subject,  and  the  terms  of  the  capitulation  agreed  upon.  I  sincerely 
lament  that  better  could  not  be  obtained  ;  but  I  have  neglected  nothing  in  my 
power  to  alleviate  the  misfortune  and  distress  of  both  officers  and  soldiers.  The 


184  APPENDIX. 

men  are  well  clothed  and  provided  with  necessaries,  and  I  trust  will  be  regularly 
supplied  by  the  means  of  the  officers  that  are  permitted  to  remain  with  them. 
The  treatment  in  general  that  we  have  received  from  the  enemy  since  our  sur 
render  has  been  perfectly  good  and  proper ;  but  the  kindness  and  attention  that 
has  been  showed  to  us  by  the  French  officers  in  particular,  their  delicate  sensibility 
of  our  situation,  their  generous  and  pressing  offer  of  money,  both  public  and  pri 
vate,  to  any  amount,  has  really  gone  beyond  what  I  can  possibly  describe,  and 'will, 
I  hope,  make  an  impression  on  the  breast  of  every  officer,  whenever  the  fortune  of 
war  should  put  any  of  them  into  our  power. 

Although  the  event  has  been  so  unfortunate,  the  patience  of  the  soldiers  in 
bearing  the  greatest  fatigues,  and  their  firmness  and  intrepidity  under  a  persevering 
fire  of  shot  and  shells,  that  I  believe  has  not  often  been  exceeded,  deserved  the 
highest  admiration  and  praise.  A  successful  defence,  however,  in  our  situation  was 
perhaps  impossible  ;  for  the  place  could  only  be  reckoned  an  intrenched  camp 
subject  in  most  places  to  ensilade,  and  the  ground  in  general  so  disadvantageous, 
that  nothing  but  the  necessity  of  fortifying  it  as  a  post  to  protect  the  navy  could 
have  induced  any  person  to  erect  works  upon  it.  Our  force  diminished  daily  by 
sickness  and  other  losses,  and  was  reduced,  when  we  offered  to  capitulate  on  this 
side,  to  little  more  than  three  thousand  two  hundred  rank  and  file  fit  for  duty, 
including  officers'  servants  and  artificers ;  and  at  Gloucester  about  six  hundred, 
including  cavalry.  The  enemy's  army  consisted  of  upward  of  six  thousand  French, 
nearly  as  many  Continentals,  and  five  thousand  militia.  They  brought  an  immense 
train  of  heavy  artillery,  most  amply  furnished  with  ammunition,  and  perfectly  well 
manned. 

The  constant  and  universal  cheerfulness  and  spirit  of  the  officers  in  all  hard 
ships  and  dangers  deserve  my  warmest  acknowledgment ;  and  I  have  been  par 
ticularly  indebted  to  Brigadier-General  O'llara  and  Lieutenant-colonel  Abercrombie, 
the  former  commanding  on  the  right,  and  the  latter  on  the  left,  for  their  attention 
and  exertion  on  every  occasion.  The  detachment  of  the  23d  regiment,  com 
manded  by  Captain  Apthorpe,  and  the  subsequent  detachments,  commanded  by 
Lieutenant-colonel  Johnson,  deserve  particular  commendation.  Captain  Rochfort, 
who  commanded  the  artillery,  and  indeed  every  officer  and  soldier  of  that  dis 
tinguished  corps,  and  Lieutenant  Sutherland,  the  commanding  engineer,  have  mer 
ited  in  every  respect  my  highest  approbation  :  and  I  cannot  sufficiently  acknowl 
edge  my  obligations  to  Captain  Symonds,  who  commanded  his  Majesty's  ships, 
and  to  the  other  officers  and  seamen  of  the  navy,  for  their  active  and  zealous  co 
operation. 

I  transmit  returns  of  our  killed  and  wounded  ;  the  loss  of  seamen  and  towns 
people  was  likewise  considerable.  I  trust  your  excellency  will  please  to  hasten  the 
return  of  the  Bonetta,  after  landing  her  passengers,  in  compliance  with  the  article 
of  capitulation. 

Lieutenant-Colonel  Abercrombie  will  have  the  honor  to  explain  this  despatch, 


APPENDIX.  185 

and  is  well  qualified  to  explain  to  your  excellency  every  particular  relating  to  our 
past  and  present  situation.  I  have  the  honor  to  be,  &c. 

CORNWALLIS. 

[Correspondence  of  Cornwallia.    Ross.'] 


XIV. — Correspondence  on,  and  the  Articles  of,  the  Capitulation. 

COPY  OF  EARL  COKNWALLIS'S  LETTER  TO  GENERAL  WASHINGTON,  DATED  YORK,  IN  VIRGINIA,  OCTOBER 

17TH,  1781. 

SIR, — I  propose  a  cessation  of  hostilities  for  twenty-four  hours,  and  that  two 
officers  may  be  appointed  by  each  side,  to  meet  at  Mr.  Moore's  house,  to  settle 
terms  for  the  surrender  of  the  posts  of  York  and  Glocester. 

I  have  the  honor  to  be,  <fec. 

CORNWALLIS. 

COPY  OF  GENERAL  WASHINGTON'S  LETTER  TO  EARL  CORNWALLIS,  DATED  CAMP  BEFORE  YORK,  17™ 

OCTOBER,  1781. 

MY  LORD, — I  have  the  honor  of  receiving  your  lordship's  letter  of  this  date. 

An  ardent  desire  to  save  the  effusion  of  human  blood  will  readily  incline  me  to 
listen  to  such  terms  for  the  surrender  of  your  posts  and  garrisons  at  York  and 
Glocester  as  are  admissible. 

I  wish,  previous  to  the  meeting  of  the  commissioners,  that  your  lordship's  pro 
posals,  in  writing,  may  be  sent  to  the  American  lines ;  for  which  purpose  a  sus 
pension  of  hostilities  during  two  hours  from  the  delivery  of  this  letter  will  be 

granted.  I  have  the  honor  to  be,  &c. 

G.  WASHINGTON. 

COPY  OF  EARL  CORNWALLIS'S  LETTER  TO  GENERAL  WASHINGTON,  DATED  YORK,  IN  VIRGINIA,  17TH 
DAY  OF  OCTOBER,  1781,  HALF-PAST  4  P.M. 

SIR, — I  have  this  moment  been  honored  with  your  Excellency's  letter,  dated 
this  day. 

The  time  limited  for  sending  my  answer  will  not  admit  of  entering  into  the 
detail  of  articles ;  but  the  basis  of  my  proposals  will  be,  that  the  garrisons  of 
York  and  Glocester  shall  be  prisoners  of  war,  with  the  customary  honors ;  and  for 
the  convenience  of  the  individuals  which  I  have  the  honor  to  command,  that  the 
British  shall  be  sent  to  Britain  and  the  Germans  to  Germany,  under  engagement 
not.  to  serve  against  France,  America,  or  their  allies,  until  released  or  regularly 
exchanged:  That  all  arms  and  public  stores  shall  be  delivered  up  to  you  ;  but  that 
the  usual  indulgence  of  side-arms  to  officers,  and  of  retaining  private  property,  shall 
be  granted  to  officers  and  soldiers  :  And  that  the  interest  of  several  individuals,  in 
civil  capacities  and  connected  with  us,  shall  be  attended  to. 

If  your  excellency  thinks  that  a  continuance  of  the  suspension  of  hostilities  will 
be  necessary  to  transmit  your  answer,  I  shall  have  no  objection  to  the  hour  that 
you  may  propose.  I  have  the  honor  to  be,  &c. 

CORNWALLIS. 


186  APPENDIX. 

COPY  OF  GENERAL  WASHINGTON'S  LETTER  TO  EARL  CORNWALLIS,  DATED  CAMP  BEFORE  YORK,  18m 

OCTOBER,  1781. 

MY  LORD, — To  avoid  unnecessary  discussions  and  delays,  I  shall  at  once,  in 
answer  to  your  lordship's  letter  of  yesterday,  declare  the  general  basis  upon  which 
a  definitive  treaty  of  capitulation  may  take  place. 

The  garrisons  of  York  and  Gloucester,  including  the  seamen  as  you  propose, 
shall  be  received  prisoners  of  war.  The  condition  annexed,  of  sending  the  British 
and  German  troops  to  the  parts  of  Europe  to  which  they  respectively  belong  is 
inadmissible  :  Instead  of  this,  they  will  be  marched  to  such  parts  of  the  country  as 
can  most  conveniently  provide  for  their  subsistence  ;  and  the  benevolent  treatment 
of  the  prisoners,  which  is  invariably  observed  by  the  Americans,  will  be  extended 
to  them.  The  same  honors  will  be  granted  to  the  surrendering  army  as  were 
granted  to  the  garrison  of  Charlestown. 

The  shipping  and  boats  in  the  two  harbors,  with  all  their  guns,  stores,  tackling, 
furniture,  and  apparel,  shall  be  delivered  in  their  present  state  to  an  officer  of  the 
navy  appointed  to  take  possession  of  them. 

The  artillery  arms,  accoutrements,  military  chest,  and  public  stores  of  every 
denomination  shall  be  delivered,  unimpaired,  to  the  heads  of  the  departments  to 
which  they  respectively  belong. 

The  officers  shall  be  indulged  in  retaining  their  side-arms  ;  and  the  officers  and 
soldiers  may  preserve  their  baggage  and  effects,  with  this  reserve,  that  property 
taken  in  the  country  will  be  reclaimed. 

With  regard  to  the  individuals  in  civil  capacities,  whose  interest  your  lordship 
wishes  may  be  attended  to,  until  they  are  more  particularly  described,  nothing 
definitive  can  be  settled. 

I  have  to  add,  that  I  expect  the  sick  and  wounded  will  be  supplied  with  their 
own  hospital  stores,  and  be  attended  by  British  surgeons,  particularly  charged  with 
the  care  of  them. 

Your  lordship  will  be  pleased  to  signify  your  determination,  either  to  accept  or 
reject  the  proposals  now  offered,  in  the  course  of  two  hours  from  the  delivery  of 
this  letter,  that  commissioners  may  be  appointed  to  digest  the  articles  of  capitula 
tion,  or  a  renewal  of  hostilities  may  take  place. 

I  have  the  honor  to  be,  <fcc. 

G.  WASHINGTON. 

COPY  OF  EARL  CORNWALLIS'S  LETTER  TO  GENERAL  WASHINGTON,  DATED  YORK,  IN  VIRGINIA,  18TH 

OCTOBER,  1781. 

SIR, — I  agree  to  open  a  treaty  of  capitulation  upon  the  basis  of  the  garrisons 
of  York  and  Gloucester,  including  seamen,  being  prisoners  of  war,  without  annex 
ing  the  condition  of  their  being  sent  to  Europe  ;  but  I  expect  to  receive  a  com 
pensation  in  the  articles  of  capitulation  for  the  surrender  of  Gloucester  in  its 
present  state  of  defence. 

I  shall  in  particular  desire  that  the  sloop  of  war  Bonetta  may  be  left  entirely  at 


APPENDIX.  187 

my  disposal  from  the  hour  that  the  capitulation  is  signed,  to  receive  an  aide-de 
camp  to  carry  my  despatches  to  Sir  Henry  Clinton.  Such  soldiers  as  I  may  think 
proper  to  send  as  passengers  in  her,  to  be  manned  with  fifty  of  her  own  crew, 
and  to  be  permitted  to  sail,  without  examination,  when  my  despatches  are  ready; 
engaging,  on  my  part,  that  the  ship  shall  be  brought  back  and  delivered  to  you  if 
she  escapes  the  dangers  of  the  sea ;  that  the  crew  and  soldiers  shall  be  accounted 
for  in  future  exchanges;  that  she  shall  carry  off  no  officer  without  your  consent, 
nor  public  property  of  any  kind ;  and  I  shall  likewise  desire,  that  the  traders  and 
inhabitants  may  preserve  their  property,  and  that  no  person  may  be  punished  or 
molested  for  having  joined  the  British  troops. 

If  you  choose  to  proceed  to  negotiations  on  these  grounds,  I  shall  appoint  two 
field  officers  of  my  army  to  meet  two  officers  from  you,  at  any  time  or  place  that 
you  may  think  proper,  to  digest  the  articles  of  capitulation. 

I  have  the  honor  to  be,  &c. 

CORNWALLIS. 

COPY  OF  THE  ARTICLES  OF  CAPITULATION  SETTLED  BETWEEN  HIS  EXCELLENCY  GENERAL  WASHING 
TON,  COMMANDER  IN  CHIEF  OF  THE  COMBIXED  FORCES  OF  AMERICA  AND  FRANCE  ;  HIS  ExCEL- 
.LENCY  THE  COUNT  DE  RoCHAMBEAU,  LIEUTENANT  GENERAL  OF  THE  ARMIES  OF  THE  KlNG  OF 

FRANCE,  GREAT  CROSS  OF  THE  ROYAL  AND  MILITARY  ORDER  OF  ST.  Louis,  COMMANDING  THE 
AUXILIARY  TROOPS  OF  HIS  MOST  CHRISTIAN  MAJESTY  IN  AMERICA  ;  AND  HIS  EXCELLENCY  THE 
COUNT  DE  GRASSE,  LIEUTENANT  GENERAL  OF  THE  NAVAL  ARMIES  OF  HIS  MOST  CHRISTIAN  MAJ 
ESTY,  COMMANDER  IN  CHIEF  OF  THE  NAVAL  ARMY  OF  FRANCE  IN  THE  CHESAPEAKE  ON  THE  ONE 

PART  :  AND  THE  RIGHT  HONORABLE  EARL  CORNWALLIS,  LIEUTENANT  GENERAL  OF  HIS  BRITAN 
NIC  MAJESTY'S  FORCES,  COMMANDING  THE  GARRISONS  OF  YORK  AND  GLOUCESTER  ;  AND  THOMAS 
SYMONDS,  ESQUIRK,  COMMANDING  HIS  BRITANNIC  MAJESTY'S  NAVAL  FORCES  IN  YORK  RIVER,  IN 
VIRGINIA,  ON  THE  OTHER  PART.  ,  * 

QtoJUfAA 
ART.  I.  The  garrisons  of  York  &  Gloucester,  including  the  officers  and  seamen 

of  his  Britannic  Majesty's  ships,  as  well  as  other  manners  to  surrender  themselves 
prisoners  of  war  to  the  combined  forces  of  America  and  France.  The  land  troops 
to  remain  prisoners  to  the  United  States;  the  navy  to  the  naval  army  of  his  most 
Christian  Majesty. 

Granted. 

ART.  II.  The  artillery,  guns,  accoutrements,  military  chest,  and  public  stores  of 
every  denomination,  shall  be  delivered  unimpaired,  to  the  heads  of  departments 
appointed  to  receive  them. 

Granted. 

ART.  III.  At  twelve  o'clock  this  day  the  two  redoubts  on  the  left  bank  of 
York  to  be  delivered ;  the  one  to  a  detachmant  of  American  infantry ;  the  other 
to  a  detachment  of  French  grenadiers. 

Granted. 

The  garrison  of  York  will  march  out  to  a  place  to  be  appointed  in  front  of  the 
posts,  at  two  o'clock  precisely,  with  shouldered  arms,  colors  cased,  and  drums  beat 
ing  a  British  or  German  march.  They  are  then  to  ground  their  arms,  and  return 


188  APPENDIX. 

to  their  encampments,  where  they  will  remain  until  they  are  dispatched  to  the 
places  of  their  destination.  Two  works  on  the  Gloucester  side  will  be  delivered  at 
one  o'clock  to  a  detachment  of  French  and  American  troops  appointed  to  possess 
them.  The  garrison  will  inarch  out  at  three  o'clock  in  the  afternoon ;  the  cavalry 
with  their  swords  drawn,  trumpets  sounding ;  and  the  infantry  in  the  manner  pre 
scribed  for  the  garrison  of  York.  They  are  likewise  to  return  to  their  encamp 
ments  until  they  can  be  finally  marched  off. 

ART.  IV.  Officers  are  to  retain  their  side-arms.  Both  officers  and  soldiers  to 
keep  their  private  property  of  every  kind  and  no  part  of  their  baggage  or  papers 
to  be  at  any  time  subject  to  search  or  inspection.  The  baggage  and  papers  of 
officers  &  soldiers  taken  daring  the  siege  to  be  likewise  preserved  for  them. 

Granted. 

It  is  understood  that  any  property  obviously  belonging  to  the  inhabitants  of 
these  States,  in  the  possession  of  the  garrison,  shall  be  subject  to  be  reclaimed. 

ART.  V.  The  soldiers  to  be  kept  in  Virginia,  Maryland,  or  Pennsylvania,  and 
as  much  by  regiments  as  possible,  and  supplied  with  the  same  rations  or  provisions 
as  are  allowed  to  soldiers  in  the  service  of  America.  A  field  officer  from  each 
nation,  to  wit,  British,  Anspach,  and  Hessian,  and  other  officers  on  parole  in  the 
proportion  of  one  to  fifty  men,  to  be  allowed  to  reside  near  their  respective  regi 
ments  and  be  witnesses  of  their  treatment ;  and  that  their  officers  may  receive  and 
deliver  clothing  and  other  necessaries  for  them  ;  for  which  passports  are  to  be 
granted  when  applied  for. 

Granted. 

ART.  VI.  The  general,  staff  &  other  officers,  not  employed  as  mentioned  in  the 
articles,  and  who  choose  it,  to  be  permitted  to  go  on  parole  to  Europe,  to  New 
York,  or  any  other  American  posts  at  present  in  possession  of  the  British  forces, 
at  their  own  option  and  proper  vessels  to  be  granted  by  the  Count  de  Grasse  to 
carry  them  under  flags  of  truce  to  New  York  within  ten  days  from  this  date,  if 
possible,  and  they  to  reside  in  a  district  to  be  agreed  upon  hereafter  until  they 
embark. 

The  officers  of  the  civil  department  of  the  army  and  navy  to  be  included  in 
this  article.  Passports  to  go  by  land  to  those  to  whom  vessels  cannot  be  furnished. 

Granted. 

ART.  VII.  Officers  to  be  allowed  to  keep  soldiers  as  servants  according  to  the 
common  practice  of  the  service.  Servants,  not  soldiers,  are  not  to  be  considered 
as  prisoners  and  are  to  be  allowed  to  attend  to  their  masters. 

Granted. 

ART.  VIII.  The  Bonetta  sloop  of  war  to  be  equipped  and  navigated  by  its 
present  captain  and  crew  and  left  entirely  at  the  disposal  of  Lord  Cornwallis  from 
the  hour  that  the  capitulation  is  signed,  to  receive  an  aid-de-camp  to  carry  dis 
patches  to  Sir  Henry  Clinton  ;  and  such-  soldiers  as  he  may  think  proper  to  send 
to  New  York,  to  be  permitted  to  sail  without  examination,  when  his  dispatches  are 


APPENDIX.  189 

ready.  His  lordship  engages  on  his  part  that  the  ship  shall  be  delivered  to  the 
order  of  the  Count  de  Grasse,  if  she  escapes  the  dangers  of  the  sea ;  that  she  shall 
not  carry  off  any  public  stores.  Any  part  of  the  crew  that  may  be  deficient  on 
her  return,  and  the  soldiers  passengers,  to  be  accounted  for  on  her  delivery. 

ART.  IX.  The  traders  are  to  preserve  their  property,  and  to  be  allowed  three 
months  to  dispose  of  or  remove  them  ;  and  those  traders  are  not  to  be  considered 
as  prisoners  of  war. 

The  traders  will  be  allowed  to  dispose  of  their  effects,  the  allied  army  having  the 
right  of  preemption.  The  traders  to  be  considered  as  prisoners  of  war  upon  parole. 

ART.  X.  Natives  or  inhabitants  of  different  parts  of  this  country,  at  present  in 
York  or  Gloucester  are  not  to  be  punished  on  account  of  having  joined  the  British 
Army. 

This  article  can  not  be  assented  to,  being  altogether  of  civil  resort. 

ART.  XI.  Proper  hospitals  to  be  furnished  for  the  sick  &  wounded.  They  are 
to  be  attended  by  their  own  surgeons  on  parole  ;  and  they  are  to  be  furnished 
with  medicines  <fe  stores  from  the  American  hospitals. 

The  hospital  stores  now  in  York  and  Gloucester  shall  be  delivered  for  the  use 
of  the  British  sick  &  wounded.  Passports  will  be  granted  for  procuring  further 
supplies  from  New  York  as  occasion  may  require  ;  and  proper  hospitals  will  be 
furnished  for  the  reception  of  the  sick  &  wounded  of  the  two  garrisons. 

vART.  XII.  Wagons  to  be  furnished  to  carry  the  baggage  of  the  officers  attend 
ing  on  the  soldiers,  and  to  surgeons  when  travelling  on  account  of  the  sick,  attend 
ing  the  hospitals  at  public  expense. 

They  arc  to  be  furnished  if  possible. 

__.  ART.  XIII.  The  shipping  and  boats  in  the  two  harbors,  with  all  their  stores, 
guns,  tackling,  and  apparel,  shall  be  delivered  up  in  their  present  state  to  an  officer 
of  the  navy  appointed  to  take  possession  of  them,  previously  unloading  the  private 
property  part  of  which  had  been  on  board  for  security  during  the  siege. 

Granted. 

ART.  XIV.  No  article  of  capitulation  to  be  infringed  on  pretence  of  reprisals ; 
and  if  there  be  any  doubtful  expressions  in  it,  they  are  to  be  interpreted  according 
to  the  common  meaning  and  acceptation  of  the  words. 

Granted. 

Done  at  York  Town  in  Virginia  Oct  19  1781. 

CORNWALLIS 
THOMAS  SYMONDS. 

Done  in  the  trenches  before  York  Town  in  Virginia  Oct  19  1781. 

G.  WASHINGTON 

LE    COMTE    DE    ROCHAMBEAU 

LE  COMTE  DE  BARRAS,  en  mon  nom 
&  celui  de  Comte  de  Grasse. 

[Sparks'  "  Washington,'1''  voLviii.,  appendix.] 


190  APPENDIX. 


XV. — American  Loss  in  the  Skirmish  with  Simcoe  at  Spencer's  Ordinary. 

RETURN  OF  THE  KILLED,  WOUNDED,  AND  MISSING  OF  THK  LIGHT  CORPS  UNDER  COLONEL  BUTLER,  IN 
THE  ACTION  OF  THE  26i'H  OF  JUNE,  1781. 

Cavalry  under  Major  Macpherson,  of  the  First  Regiment  of  Dragoons:  1  cap 
tain  wounded  ;  5  privates  killed  ;  1  private  taken  (since  returned). 

Of  Armand's  horse:  2  lieutenants  killed,  1  private  ditto;  1  sergeant  prisoner. 

Infantry  and  riflemen  under  Major  Macpherson  :   1  lieutenant  killed. 

Captain  Long's  company  of  riflemen  :   1  private  wounded ;  5  ditto  missing. 

Horses  lost,  11. 

Loss  of  Major  Willis'  corps  of  riflemen  :  1  captain  wounded,  6  privates  ditto ; 
1  lieutenant  missing,  7  privates  ditto. 

Total:  Wounded,  2  captains,  2  lieutenants,  10  privates;  killed,  2  lieutenants, 
1  sergeant,  6  privates;  missing,!  lieutenant,  12  privates;  prisoners,  1  sergeant,  1 

private  (returned  since). 

RICHARD  BUTLER, 

Colonel  Commanding  advanced  Light  Corps. 

\_Penn.  Gazette,  July,  17S1.] 


XVI. — American  Loss  in  the  Action  of  Green  Spring. 

RETURN  OF  THE  KILLED,  WOUNDED,  AND  MISSING,  OF  THE  DETACHMENT  COMMANDED  BY  GENERAL 
WAYNE,  IN  A  SKIRMISH  WITH  THE  BRITISH  ARMY  NEAR  THE  GREEN  SPRINGS,  IN  VIRGINIA, 
JULY  6,  1781. 

Major  Galvan's  advanced  guard :  4  rank  and  file  killed ;  1  sergeant,  7  rank  and 
file,  wounded. 

Colonel  Stewart's  detachment  of  Pennsylvanians :  11  rank  and  file  killed;  2 
captains,  3  lieutenants,  4  sergeants,  30  rank  and  file,  wounded. 

Colonel  Butler's  detachment  of  Pennsylvanians :  2  sergeants,  4  rank  and  file, 
killed;  15  rank  and  file  wounded;  9  rank  and  file  missing. 

Colonel  Hampton's  detachment  of  Pennsylvanians :  1  sergeant,  4  rank  and  file, 
killed  ;  3  captains,  1  lieutenant,  1  sergeant,  19  rank  and  file,  wounded. 

Major  Willis'  [Wyllys]  detachment  of  light  infantry:  1  sergeant,  1  rank  and  file, 
killed ;  7  rank  and  file  wounded. 

Captain  Ogden's  company  of  Macpherson's  Legion :  2  rank  and  file  wounded. 

Captains  Savage  and  Duffy's  artillery  :  1  captain-lieutenant,  1  sergeant,  2  rank 
and  file,  wounded. 

Total :  4  sergeants,  24  rank  and  file,  killed  ;  5  captains,  1  captain-lieutenant,  4 
lieutenants,  7  sergeants,  82  rank  and  file,  wounded:  12  rank  and  file  missing. 

Names  of  the  officers  wounded : 

Captains  Vanlear  (division  inspector),  Doyle,  Finney,  Montgomery,  Stoke,  and 
McClellan. 


APPENDIX.  191 

Lieutenants  Piercy,  Feltman,  White,  Herbert  (taken  prisoner),  Captain-lieuten 
ant  Crosby  [Crossley],  of  artillery. 

N.B. — A  few  riflemen  were  wounded ;  number  not  ascertained. 

WILLIAM  BARBER, 

Major  and  D.A.G. 

[Xew  Jersey  Gazette,  July,  1781.] 


XVII.  —  Loss  of  the  Allies  at  Yorktown. 

RKTURN  OF  THE  KILLED  AND  WOUNDED  OF  THE  FRENCH  TROOPS  SINCE  THE  BEGINNING  OF  THE 

SIEGE  OF  YORK. 

From  the  6th  to  the  7th  October. 

Killed.    Wounded. 

In  making  the  first  parallel  —  main  attack  ............................     0  1 

Attack  up  the  river  at  the  left  ...........................................     0  7 

Oue  officer  of  the  Artillery  wounded. 

From  the  1th  to  the  8th. 
In  making  the  batteries  upon  the  first  parallel  —  main  attack    0  6 

From  the  Sth  to  the  9th. 
Continuation  of  the  batteries  —  main  attack  ..........................     1  1 

From  the  9th  to  the  10th. 
Continuation  of  the  batteries  ...............................................     0 

Attack  up  the  river  ............................................................     0  0 

From  the  Wth  to  the  nth. 
The  batteries  firing—  main  attack  ........................................     1  1 

From  the  llth  to  the  12th. 
Opening  the  second  parallel  —  main  attack  ............................     0  4 

Attack  up  the  river  ..............................................................     0  3 

From  the  12th  to  the  13th. 
Commencing  of  the  batteries  on  the  second  parallel  .............     6  11 

Two  officers  wounded. 

From  the  13th  to  the  Hth. 

Continuation  of  the  batteries  .................................................     1  28 

Attack  up  the  river  .......  :  ......................................................     0  3 

From  the  l±th  to  the  15th. 
Attack  of  two  redoubts  of  the  enemy  down  the  river  ..........  41  57 

Six  officers  wounded. 


50         127 

Nine  officers  wounded,  two  of  them  since  dead. 


192  APPENDIX. 

RETURN  OF  THE  KILLED  AND  WOUNDED  OF  THE  AMERICAN  ARMY,  FROM  THE  28ra  OF  SEPTEMBER, 
1781,  THE  DAY  OF  THE  INVESTITURE  OF  YORK,  TO  THE  STORM  OF  THE  ENEMY'S  REDOUBTS,  ON  THE 
NIGHT  OK  THE  14rn  OF  OCTOBER  FOLLOWING,  INCLUSIVE. 

From  the  investiture  of  York  to  the  opening  of  the  first  parallel,  on  the  evening  of  the  6th 

October,  exclusive. 

Continentals:  killed,  1  sergeant,  3  rank  and  file;  wounded,  1  colonel,1  2  rank  and 
file.  Militia:  killed,  1  rank  and  file;  wounded,  C  rank  and  file. 

From  the  opening  of  the  first  parallel  to  that  of  the  second,  on  the  evening  of  the  lit  ft 

October,  exclusive. 
Continentals :  killed,  2  rank  and  file  ;  wounded,  3  rank  and  file. 

From  tJie  opening  of  the  second  parallel  to  the  14£A  October,  inclusive. 
Continentals:  killed,  1  captain,  3  rank  and  file;  wounded,  1  captain,  7  rank  and 
file.     Militia  :  killed,  3  rank  and  file ;  wounded,  7  rank  and  file. 

At  the  storm,  on  the  evening  of  the  14<7i  October. 

Continentals:  killed,  8  rank  and  file;  wounded,  2  lieutenant -colonels,  1  major,  2 
captains,  1  captain-lieutenant,  1  lieutenant,  1  sergeant,  28  rank  and  file. 

Total — Continentals  killed:  1  captain,  1  sergeant,  16  rank  and  file;  wounded:  1 
colonel,  2  lieutenant-colonels,  1  major,  3  captains,  1  captain-lieutenant,  1  lieutenant,  1 
sergeant,  40  rank  and  file. 

Total — Militia  :  killed,  4  rank  and  file  ;  wounded,  16  rank  and  file. 

Officers  killed  at  the  opening  of  the  second  parallel. 
Captain  White,  of  Colonel  Vose's  battalion,  infantry. 

Officers  wounded  at  the  opening  of  the  second  parallel. 
Captain  Gosselen,  of  General  Hazen's  regiment. 

Officers  wounded  at  the  storm. 

Lieutenant-colonels  Barber  and  Gimat;  Major  Barber,  inspector  to  Light  Infantry 
division;  Captains  Olney  and  Hunt,  of  Colonel  Gimat's  battalion,  infantry;  Captain- 
lieutenant  Kirkpatrick,  Corps  of  Sappers  and  Miners;  Lieutenant  Mansfield,  of  Colonel 
Gimat's  battalion,  infantry. 

EDWARD  HAND,  A.  G. 

[These  returns  were  published  in  the  Philadelphia  and  other  papers  of  the  day— November,  1T8L] 

'  Colonel  Scammell,  since  dead. 


APPENDIX. 


193 


XVIII. — American  Loss  at  the  Storming  of  Redoubt  No.  10. 

RETURN  OF  THE  KILLED  AND  WOUNDED  IN  THE  ADVANCED  CORPS,  COMMANDED  BY  LIEUTENANT- 
COLONEL  HAMILTON,  IN  AN  ATTACK  ox  THE  EXKMY'S  LEFT  REDOUBT,  ON  THE  NIGHT  OF  TH*. 
14m  OK  OCTOBER,  17S1. 


LCKUT.-OOI.S. 

MAJOBS. 

CAPTAINS. 

SUBALTERNS. 

SKKOEANTS. 

RANK 

AND  FILE. 

X 

3 

Wounded. 

•o 
_o 

3 

Wounded. 

Killed. 

Wounded. 

>d 

X 

Q 

Wounded. 

Killed. 

Wounded. 

i 
Killed. 

Wounded. 

Lt.-Col.Hamiltou's  i 

battalion   .      •  •  j 

4 
15 

5 
1 

1 

2 

1 
1 

1 

1 

7 
1 

Lieut.-Col.  Gimat's  / 
battalion  ^ 

Lt.  -  Col.  Laurcns'  > 
detachment..  .  .  J 
Corps  of  Sappers  / 
and  Miners  ^ 

• 

Total 

1 

4 

1 

1 

8 

25 

[Hamilton's  Works,  vol.  i.,  pp.  270-72.] 


XIX.  —  British  Loss  at  the  Siege  of  Yorktown. 

RETURN  OF  THE  KILLED,  WOUNDED,  AND  MISSING  IN  THE  ARMY  UNDER  LORD  CORNVVALLIS,  FROM  THK 
28iH  OF  SEPTEMBER  TO  THE  19m  OF  OCTOBER,  1781. 


Royal  Artillery:  24  rank  flod  file,  killed  ;  21  ditto,  wounded;  3  ditto,  missing. 

Guards:  1  sergeant,  3  rank  and  file,  killed;  1  sergeant,  21  rank  and  file, 
wounded. 

Light  Infantry  :  1  lieutenant,  3  sergeants,  24  rank  and  file,  killed  ;  3  lieuten 
ants,  2  sergeants,  1  drummer,  51  rank  and  file,  wounded. 

Seventeenth  Regiment  :  1  drummer,  killed  ;  1  sergeant,  6  rank  and  file,  wounded. 

Twenty-third  Regiment  :  2  lieutenants,  1  sergeant,  8  rank  and  file,  killed  ;  3  ser 
geants,  2  drummers,  15  rank  and  file,  wounded. 

Thirty-third  Regiment:  1  captain,  7  rank  and  file,  killed;  1  lieutenant,  1  ser 
geant,  10  rank  and  file,  wounded;  1  subaltern,  7  rank  and  file,  missing. 

Forty-third  Regiment  :  1  sergeant,  9  rank  and  file,  killed  ;  1  sergeant,  1  drum 
mer,  16  rank  and  file,  wounded  ;  1  captain,  11  rank  and  file,  missing. 

Seventy-first  Regiment:  1  lieutenant,  9  rank  and  file,  killed;  3  drummers,  19 
rank  and  file,  wounded  ;  1  major,  10  rank  and  file,  missing. 

Seventy-sixth  Regiment  :  1  drummer,  5  rank  and  file,  killed  ;  1  lieutenant,  4 
rank  and  file,  wounded. 

Eightieth  Regiment:  1  rank  and  file,  killed;  11  ditto,  wounded;  1  captain,  9 
rank  and  file,  missing. 

18 


194: 


APPENDIX. 


Two  battalions  Anspach :  1  sergeant,  11  rank  and  file,  killed;  4  sergeants,  30 
rank  and  file,  wounded. 

Prince  Hereditaire :  2  sergeants,  2  drummers,  19  rank  and  file,  killed ;  1  ser 
geants,  1  drummer,  49  rank  and  file,  wounded  ;  2  sergeants,  14  rank  and  file, 
missing. 

Regiment  de  Bose :  1  captain,  4  sergeants,  13  rank  and  file,  killed  ;  1  ensign,  4 
sergeants,  3  drummers,  32  rank  and  file,  wounded;  1  sergeant,  10  rank  and  file, 
missing. 

Total:  2  captains,  4  lieutenants,  13  sergeants,  4  drummers,  133  rank  and  file, 
killed  ;  5  lieutenants,  1  ensign,  24  sergeants,  11  drummers,  285  rank  and  file,  wound 
ed  ;  1  major,  2  captains,  1  subaltern,  3  sergeants,  63  rank  and  file,  missing. 

RANK  AND  NAMES  OK  OFFICERS  IN'  THE  ABOVE  RETURN. 
Hon.  Major  Cochrane,  acting  aide-de-camp  to  Earl  Cornwallis,  killed. 
Light  Infantry  :   Lieutenant  Campbell,  74th  company,  killed ;   Lieutenant  Lys- 
ter,  63d  ditto,  wounded,  since  dead ;   Lieutenant  Dunn,  63d  ditto,  wounded,  since 
dead;  Lieutenant  Lightburne,  37th  ditto,  wounded. 

Twenty-third  Regiment :  Lieutenants  Ware  and  Gnyon,  killed. 
Thirty-third  Regiment:  Captain  Kerr,  killed;  Lieutenant  Carson,  wounded. 
Seventy-first  Regiment :  Lieutenant  Fraser,  killed. 
Seventy-sixth  Regiment :  Lieutenant  Robertson,  wounded. 
.Captain  Rail,  killed  ;  P^usign  Sprangenberg,  wounded. 
Commissary  Perkins,  killed.  J.  DESIIARD, 

Dep.  Adj.  Gen. 

[Tarleton's  "Campaigns."] 
STATE  OF  THE  ENEMY'S  Loss  DURING  THE  SIEGE  OF  YORK. 


Majors. 

Captains. 

Lieuts. 

Ensigns. 

Sergts. 

Rank 
and  File. 

Total. 

Taken  in  the  redoubts  
Taken  at  the  sortie  

1 

2 

2 

1 

1 

66 

73 
6 

Deserted  during  the  siege.  . 

44 

Killed  

3091 

Wounded  

120 

Total  

552 

N.B. — The  total  number  is  taken  from  the  British  Adjutant-general's  Report, 
the  number  of  wounded  from  the  hospital  books,  the  prisoners  from  the  Commis 
sary's  return,  and  the  deserters  from  the  Adjutant-general's  Register. 

EDWD.  HAND,  A.G. 

[from  Archives,  State  Department,  Washington,  D.C.] 

1  General  Hand's  figures  of  the  enemy's  killed  and  wounded  are  based  on  inference, 
as  he  implies  in  his  note.  The  correct  figures  are  given  in  the  preceding  British  re 
turns. 


APPENDIX.  195 

XX. — Strength  of  the  Annies  at  Yorktown. 

A  search  among'  the  papers  of  Adjutant-general  Hand,  in  the  possession  of  the 
Government,  might  bring  to  light  one  or  more  of  the  official  returns  showing  the 
exact  strength  of  the  French  and  American  armies  before  Yorktown.  In  their  ab 
sence  there  are  data  which  enable  us  to  form  a  close  estimate.  For  instance,  Colo 
nel  Ilarrv  Lee  states  in  his  "  Memoirs"  that  the  official  returns  made  the  American 
wing  9000  strong — 5500  Continentals,  3500  militia;  the  French  wing,  7000. 
These  are  the  figures  it  is  proposed  to  inscribe  on  the  National  Monument,  and,  as 
I'nmid  numbers,  they  are  to  be  accepted  as  nearly  correct.  The  French  wing  was 
probably  somewhat  stronger.  In  President  Stiles'  "Diary,"  Yale  College,  the  fol 
lowing  entry  is  found  under  date  of  December,  1781,  in  reference  to  Washington's 
force.  The  regiments  were:  "1  K.  1.,  full ;  1  Haze  n,  2  or  300;  2  X.  Y.,  full ; 
•2  X.  J. ;  3  Pcnn.;  2  Md.,  full,  1100;  1  Ya.  Continental;  1  Vn.  State  reg1 ;  1  Batt. 
of  Col.  Hamilton's,  being  four  companies;  1  Detatch  Infantry,  Col.  Scammel,  being 
eight  companies;  3  Keg'8  Light  Inf.  Amcr.,  'being  all  the  Light  Inf.  of  the  Am. 
Army,  except  those  with  G.  Green  in  So.  Caro.'  Besides  these  perhaps — 3000 
Ya.  militia,  equal  18  rents  besides  militia.  8000  Am.,  7000  French  (4000  from 
K.  I.,  3000  landed  from  French  fleet)."  As  Dr.  Stiles  had  just  spent  an  evening 
with  Lieutenant-colonel  Humphreys,  \Yashington's  aide,  who  gave  him  "an  acc°  of 
the  Siege  &  Capture  of  Ld.  Cornwallis,"  the  latter  probably  furnished  him  with 
the  above  figures.  One  official  item  is  preserved  in  the  Xew  Jersey  archives,  ex 
tracted  from  General  Hand's  "  Weekly  Report  of  the  Continental  Army  for  Octo 
ber  13th,  1781,"  which  gives  Dayton's  brigade  54  commissioned  officers,  101  non 
commissioned  officers,  and  1173  rank  and  file,  for  that  date. 

As  to  the  British  army,  copies  of  Major  Despard's  returns  for  the  19th  of  Oc 
tober,  1781,  in  the  State  Department,  give  a  total  of  5886  officers  and  men  in  York- 
town  on  that  date,  of  whom  1882  are  entered  as  sick  or  wounded.  At  Gloucester, 
on  the  same  date,  900  officers  and  men,  of  whom  153  were  sick.  Grand  total,  6780, 
with  4751  fit  for  duty  on  the  day  of  the  surrender.  This  total  is  461  less  than 
the  American  return  of  prisoners  (7247);  but  as  Major  Despard  does  not  include 
the  camp  followers  and  about  100  persons  connected  with  the  several  departments, 
the  discrepancy  is  reduced  to  about  250  between  the  final  British  and  American 
return  of  prisoners  surrendered  at  York  and  Gloucester. 


XXI. — List  of  Original  Authorities  on  the  Campaign. 

BLANCII.ARD,  Claude. — "Journal,  l780-'83."      Translated  from  the  French  manu 
script  by  William  Duanc,  and  edited  by  Thomas  Balch.     Albany,  1876. 

BUTLER,  Colonel  Richard. — "Journal  of  the  Siege  of  Yorktown."     Historical  Mag 
azine,  vol.  \  iii.,  p.  102. 


19G  APPENDIX. 

CHASTELLUX,  Marquis  do. — "Travels  in  North  America  in  l7SO-'82."  London, 
1787. 

CLINTON,  Sir  Henry. — "Narrative  of  the  Campaign."     London,  1783. 

"Observations  on  some  parts  of  the  Answer  of  Earl  Cornwallis."     1783. 
"Observations  on  Mr.  Stedman's  History  of  the  American  War."     1794. 

Clinton's  "Explanation,"  in  "Washington's  Contemplated  Attack  on  New 
York."  Page  177  of  New  York  City  During  the  American  Revolution.  Mer 
cantile  Library  Association,  N.  Y.  1860. 

CORNWALLIS,  Earl. — "Answer  to  Clinton's  Narrative."     London,  1783. 

"  Correspondence."     Edited,  with  notes,  by  Charles  Ross.     London,  1859. 
DENNY,  Lieutenant. — "Journal."     Pub.  Pennsylvania  Historical  Society. 

I  >KI-XPONTS,  Count  William. — "My  Campaigns  in  America."  Translated,  with  in 
troduction  and  notes,  by  Samuel  A.  Green,  M.D.,  Librarian,  Massachusetts  His 
torical  Society,  Boston. 

"  DIPLOMATIC  Correspondence  of  the  American  Revolution,"  Sparks.     Boston,  1829. 

EVANS,  Chaplain. — "  Journal  of  the  Siege  of  York  in  Virginia."  Collections  Mas 
sachusetts  Historical  Society,  vol.  ix.,  First  Series,  p.  102. 

[The  Chaplain's  name  is  not  given  in  connection  with  the  Journal,  but  it 
appears,  from  a  reference  in  Thacher's  "  Military  Journal,"  that  the  writer  was 
Chaplain  Evans,  of  Colonel  Scammell's  corps.] 

FELTMAN,  Lieutenant  William. — "Journal  of  the  Campaign."  Pub.  Pennsylvania 
Historical  Society. 

FERSEN,  Count. — "Letters  and  Journal  of  Operations,  1780-'81."  Magazine  of 
American  History,  1879.  Also,  in  same  Magazine,  May  and  June,  1880,  "Diary 
of  a  French  Officer,"  with  Engineer's  journal  added. 

GRAHAM,  General  Samuel. — "  Memoirs."     Edinburgh. 

GRAVES,  Rear-admiral.  —  "Two  Letters  Respecting  the  Conduct  of  Rear-admiral 
Graves  on  the  Coast  of  the  United  States,  July  to  November,  1781."  By 
William  Graves,  Esq.,  of  the  Inner  Temple.  Morrisania,  N.  Y.,  1865.  H.  B. 
Dawson. 

"JOURNAL  of  the  Siege  of  Yorktown."  By  an  Officer.  Martin's  "Gazetteer  of  Vir 
ginia,"  title,  Yorktown. 

LAFAYETTE,  Marquis  de. — "Memoirs,  Correspondence,  and  Manuscripts  of."  Ameri 
can  edition,  N.  Y.,  1837.  [See,  also,  a  few  letters  in  Graham's  "Life  of  Gen 
eral  Daniel  Morgan."] 

LATZUN,  Due  de. — "  Memoires."     Paris,  1832. 


APPENDIX.  1!»  7 

LEE,  Lieutenant-colonel   Harry. — "  Memoirs  of  tlie   War  in  the  Southern  Depart 
ment  of  the  United  States."     Philadelphia,  1812. 

Mrm.ENBERG,  General  Peter. — "Life  of.'1     By  Henry  N.  Muhlenberg.      Philadel 
phia,  1849. 

NELSON,  Governor  Thomas. — "Letters."     Pub.  Virginia  Historical  Society.      New 
Series.     No.  I.     1874. 

"OPERATIONS  of  the  French  Fleet  under  De  Grasse."     Bradford  Club,  N.  Y.     1804. 

'•ORDERLY  Book  of  the  Siege  of  Yorktown  from  September  26th,  1781,  to  No 
vember  2d,  1781."     Philadelphia,  1865. 

"PARLIAMENTARY  Register  for  l781-'83." 
PICKERING,  Colonel  Timothy. — "  Life  of."     Boston. 

ROCHAMBEAU,  Count. — "  Meiiioii1  Relative  to  the  War  of  the  Independence  of  the 
United  States."     Translation  of  M.  \V.  E.  Wright.     Paris,  1838. 

RocnEFOUCAULT-LiANCOURT,  Due  de. — "  Travels  Through  the  United  States  ...  in 
!795-'97."     London,  1800. 

SIMCOE,  Lieutenant-colonel  J.  G. — "  Military  Journal  of  the  Campaigns  in  American 
Revolution."     New  York,  1844. 

STEUBEN,  Baron. — -"Life  of."     By  Friedrich  Kapp.     New  York,  1859. 

TARLETON,  Lieutenant-Colonel  Banastre. — "History  of  Campaigns  of  1780-"81  in 
the  Southern  Provinces  of  North  America."     London,  1787. 

Tii ACIIER,  Surgeon  James. — "Military  Journal  During  the  American  Revolutionary 
War  from  1775  to  1783."     Hartford,  1854. 

TILGHMAN,  Lieutenant-colonel  Tench. — "  Memoir   of,  with  Revolutionary  Journals 
and  Letters."     Albany,  1876. 

WASHINGTON,  General.  —  "Writings   of."      By  Jared   Sparks.      New  York,  1847. 
[Also  Sparks'  "Correspondence  of  the  Revolution."] 

WAYNE,  General  Anthony. — "  Life  and  Letters  of."     By  his  Son.      Philadelphia 
Casket.     1829. 

WELD,  Isaac. — "Travels  in  the  Northern  States  and  Canada,  l795-'97."     London, 
1799. 

[In  addition  to  these  special  Journals  and  Narratives,  the  documents  printed 
in  this  Appendix,  and  the  contemporary  histories  of  Gordon,  Stedman,  Mar 
shall,  and  others,  the  writer  has  been  favored  with  access  to  the  ample  manu 
script  collections  of  the  New  York  and  Massachusetts  Historical  Societies,  and 
those  at  Albany,  Hartford,  and  elsewhere.  For  other  references  on  the  cam 
paign  the  "  Handbook  of  the  American  Revolution,"  by  Mr.  Justin  Winsor, 
Librarian  of  Harvard  College,  is  to  be  consulted.] 


108  APPENDIX. 

MAPS   AND   PLANS   OP   THE   SIEGE. 

1.  The  earliest  plan    or  "draft"  was  doubtless  the  one   Washington  states,  Octo 

ber  26th,  1781,  that  he  transmitted  to  Congress  with  the  returns  of  prisoners 
and  the  captured  standards.  It  is  not  known  to  be  in  existence. 

2.  Map  of  the  Investment  of  York  and  Gloucester,  in  Virginia.     Surveyed  October 

22-28th,  1781,  by  Major  Sebastian  Bauinan,  Second  Continental  Artillery. 
Philadelphia,  1782.  Dedicated  to  Washington. — [Copies  in  libraries  of  tin- 
New  York  and  Pennsylvania  Historical  Societies.  Published,  on  reduced  scale, 
in  Gordon's  History,  and  in  Magazine  of  American  History,  January,  1881.] 

3.  Plan  of  the  Siege  and  adjacent  Country.     Drawn  by  J.  F.  Renault  "  with  a  crow- 

pen,  and  presented  to  the  Marquis  de  Lafayette."  Engraved  by  B.  Tanner, 
Philadelphia.  1825  (?) — [This  appears  to  be  a  cop}'  of  Bauman's,  with  the 
legend  different! v  executed  and  ornamented.! 

O  •/  J 

4.  A  Plan  of  York  and  Gloucester,  showing  the  British  and  American  Works  in 

1781.    By  Captain  Edward  Fage,  Royal  Artillery.    London,  1782. — [Elaborate.] 

5.  Plan  of  the  same  from  "an  actual  survey  in  possession  of  Jno.  Hills,  late  Lieut. 

in  the  23rd  Regt.  and  Asst.  Eng." — [This  is  known  as  the  Fad  en  map,  London, 
1785,  and  was  probably  compiled  from  the  survey  by  Fage.] 

6.  Plan  of  the  Siege  of  Yorktown  in  Virginia.     London,  March  1st,  1787. 

7.  A  Plan  of  the  Entrance  of  Chesapeake  Bay7,  with  James  and  York  Rivers ;  where 

in  are  shown  the  respective  positions  (in  the  beginning  of  October) : 

1st,  Of  the  British  Army  commanded  by  Lord  Cornwallis,  at  Gloucester 
and  York,  in  Virginia. 

2d,  Of  the  American  and  French  Forces  under  General  Washington. 

3d,  Of  the  French  Fleet  under  Count  de  Grasse.  By  "  an  Officer."  Pub 
lished  by  Win.  Fadcn.  Charing  Cross,  November  26th,  1781,  London. — [This 
and  the  preceding  map,  No.  6,  are  on  file  at  the  office  of  the  Chief  of  Engi 
neers,  U.S.A.,  Washington,  D.  C.] 

8.  Plan  D'York  en  Virginie  avec  les  attaqucs  et  les  Campemens  de  I'Armec  com- 

bince  dc  France  et  d'Amerique. — [This  plan,  by  a  French  engineer,  appears  in 
the  fourth  volume  of  Soule's  "  Histoire  DCS  Troubles  dc  1'Ameriquc  Anglaisc," 
Paris,  1787;  also  in  Magazine  of  American  History,  June,  1880.  In  Soule's 
work,  also,  is  a  clear  and  accurate  map  showing  the  inarch  of  the  French  from 
Newport,  R.  I.,  to  Yorktown,  and  return.  The  camp  before  Yorktown  is  marked 
as  their  "  40th."] 

N.  B. — Bauman's,  Fage's,  Hill's,  and  the  French  map  are  the  best  authorities, 
the  first-named  covering  the  entire  field,  including  the  allied  camps,  with  great 
accuracy. 


APPENDIX.  199 

XXII.  —  Washington's   Orders  at  Williainsburg.1 

Head-quarters,  WUliamsburg,  September  15th,  1781. 

The  Coinmaiidcr-in-cliiof  takes  the  earliest  opportunity  of  testifying  the  satis 
faction  he  feels  on  joining-  the  army  under  the  command  <>f  Major-general  the  Mar 
quis  de  Lafayette,  with  prospects  which,  under  the  smiles  of  Heaven,  he  doubts 
not,  will  crown  their  toils  with  the  most  brilliant  success.  A  conviction  that  the 
officers  and  soldiers  of  this  army  will  still  be  actuated  by  that  true  martial  spirit 
and  thirst  of  glory  which  they  have  already  exhibited  on  so  many  trying  occasions, 
and  under  circumstances  far  less  promising  than  the  present,  affords  him  the  most 
pleasing  sensations. 

The  arrival  of  a  powerful  fleet  and  army,  under  the  command  of  his  Excellency 
Count  de  Grasse  and  the  Marquis  de  St.  Sinionr  displays  a  new  and  striking  instance 
of  the  generous  attention  of  his  Most  Christian  Majesty  to  the  interests  of  these 
United  States. 

A  very  respectable  body  of  troops,  both  French  and  Americans,  are  on  their 
inarch  from  the  eastward,  and  may  soon  be  expected  to  aid  our  operations  in  this 
quarter. 

The  zeal  and  celerity  with  which  Major-general  dc  St.  Simon  debarked  his 
troops  and  joined  the  army  under  the  command  of  the  Marquis  de  Lafayette,  at 
so  critical  a  juncture,  demands  his  most  grateful  acknowledgments,  which  he  en 
treats  the  marquis  to  accept.  lie  also  prays  him  to  have  the  complaisance  to 
signify  to  the  officers  and  soldiers  under  his  command  the  high  sense  the  General 
entertains  of  the  spirit  and  ardor  they  have  shown  on  that  occasion.  He  partic 
ularly  admires  the  patience  with  which  they  supported  the  scarcity  of  provisions 
that  unfortunately  existed  at  the  time  of  their  junction,  owing  to  particular  circum 
stances — circumstances  which  he  exceedingly  regrets,  but  hopes  they  are  already 
remedied,  and  that  the  like  misfortune  will  not  be  again  experienced. 

Accurate  returns  of  the  two  different  corps,  as  well  Continental  as  militia  now 
serving  here,  to  be  given  in  at  head-quarters  to-morrow,  at  ten  o'clock,  specifying 
the  number  of  militia  that  are  unarmed.  Commanding  officers  of  the  corps  must 
be  answerable  for  the  correctness  of  their  returns,  and  that  the  men  returned  on 
duty  must  be  particularly  and  satisfactorily  accounted  for. 


1  These  orders,  issued  by  Washington  from  the  15th  to  the  25th  of  September,  1781, 
do  not  appear  in  the  "  Yorktown  Orderly  Bookx"  which  begins  with  September  26th. 
They  complete  the  series  issued  by  the  commander-in-chief  after  his  arrival  in  Virginia 
to  conduct  operations  against  Cornwallis.  The  author  is  indebted  for  them  to  Mr.  F.D. 
Stone,  Librarian  of  the  Pennsylvania  Historical  Society,  who  will  also  publish  them  in 
the  third  number  of  the  Pennsylvania  Historical  Mtf/dziiit'.lSSl.  The  original  orders 
appear  in  the  diary  of  Captain  Davis,  of  the  Pennsylvania  Line%which  was  first  printed 
in  the  Westchester,  PH.,  Village  Record,  in  1821. 


200  APPENDIX. 

Head-quarters,  Williamsburg,  September  16th,  1781. 

During  the  present  scarcity  of  provisions  the  Quartermaster  will  take  care  that 
a  sufficient  number  of  corn-fields  are  procured  for  the  use  of  the  troops.  The  Com 
mander-in-chief  in  the  most  pointed  manner  forbids  the  soldiers  entering  or  taking 
corn  from  any  field  but  those  pointed  out  by  the  Quartermasters,  and  hopes  that 
every  officer  will  see  this  order  attended  to. 

Head-quarters,  Williamsburg,  September  17th,  1781. 

The  Quartermasters  of  brigades  and  separate  corps  are  to  make  returns  of 
camp  equipage  and  all  other  articles  in  the  Quartermaster's  department  to  the  Quar 
termaster-general  to-morrow  at  orderly  time.  The  President  and  members  of  the 
General  Court-martial  will  return  to  their  duties  in  their  respective  lines  until  the 
pleasure  of  the  Commander-in-chief  be  known  with  respect  to  their  proceedings. 

S 

Head-quarters,  Williamsburg,  September  19th,  1781. 

The  Inspector-general  will  review  the  Maryland  troops  Friday  morning,  at  eight 
o'clock.  At  the  same  hour  he  desires  to  see  all  the  Continental  field-officers  on 
the  grand  parade.  The  grand  parade  for  the  present  is  assigned  on  the  field  in 
the  rear  of  the  College. 

Head-quarters,  Williamsburg,  September  24th,  1781. 

An  accurate  inspection  of  arms,  accoutrements,  and  ammunition  to  be  made 
immediately,  and  the  deficiencies  completed. 

The  Continental  troops  composing  the  troops  in  Virginia  are  to  be  brigaded 
as  follows : 

Colonel  Vose's,  Lieutenant -colonel  Barber's,  and  Lieutenant -colonel  Gimat's 
battalions  of  infantry  will  form  a  brigade,  to  be  commanded  by  Brigadier-general 
Muhlcnberg. 

Colonel  ScammeH's  regiment,  and  Lieutenant -colonel  Hamilton's  battalion  of 
infantry,  and  Hazen's  regiment  —  the  brigade  to  be  commanded  by  Brigadier- 
general  Ilazen. 

Colonel  Gaskins'  Virginia  Regiment,  and  the  two  battalions  of  Pennsylvania 
— brigade  to  be  commanded  by  Brigadier-general  Wayne. 

The  two  Jersey  battalions,  and  the  Rhode  Island  battalion  —  a  brigade  to  be 
commanded  by  Colonel  Dayton. 

The  Third  and  Fourth  Maryland  Regiments — a  brigade  to  be  commanded  by 
Brigadier-general  Gist. 

The  First  and  Second  New  York  Regiments — a  brigade  to  be  commanded  by 
General  Clinton. 

The  Inspector-general  desires  the  commanding  officers  of  regiments  and  corps 
may  have  them  inspected  without  delay,  agreeably  to  the  General  Orders  of  this 
day,  and  report  to  him  the  state  of  their  arms,  ammunition,  and  accoutrements. 


APPENDIX.  2U1 

Head-quarters,  Willianisburjr,  September  25th,  1781. 

All  deserters  and  persons  coining  from  the  enemy's  lines  are  to  be  sent  in  the 
tirst  instance  to  head-quarters.  No  horses,  arms,  or  accoutrements  are  to  be  pur 
chased  from  them,  except  for  the  public  service,  unless  it  is  specified  to  the  con 
trary  in  the  written  papers  which  will  be  granted  them  by  the  Adjutant-general. 
Any  person  of  the  abov7e  description  found  without  proper  passes  with  the  army, 
or  within  the  environs  of  the  encampment,  to  be  apprehended  and  sent  to  the  pro 
vost  guard. 

The  Deputy  Commissary -general  of  prisoners  will  report  to  head -quarters  all 
prisoners  of  war  immediately  after  their  capture. 

The  several  issuing  Commissaries  will  be  particularly  careful,  reserving  all  the 
sheepskins  for  the  use  of  the  artillery  —  they  will  be  delivered  to  Mr.  Thomas 
Jones,  D.C.M.S.,  on  his  application. 

At  a  general  court-martial  assembled  at  Williamsburg,  by  order  of  Major- 
general  the  Marquis  Lafayette,  Colonel  Vose  president,  Captain  \Vilkin,  of  Colo 
nel  Stewart's  battalion  of  the  Pennsylvania  line,  charged  by  Colonel  Stewart 
with  riotous  behavior,  in  his  tent,  in  an  unreasonable  hour  of  the  night,  with  dis 
obedience  in  not  desisting  when  ordered  to  do  so  by  the  field-officer  of  the  day, 
through  the  Adjutant,  Capt.  Vanhorne,  and  for  using  language  and  conduct  sub 
versive  of  good  order  and  discipline,  was  tried  and  acquitted.1 


The  following  interesting  letter  is  from  the  "Irvine  Papers,"  as  published  in  the 
Pennsylvania  Magazine  of  History ,  Jsov  3,  1781: 

COLONEL  BCTLKR  TO  GENERAL  IRVINE. 

Camp  at  York,  October  22d,  1781. 

DEAR  GENERAL, — -As  time  presses,  1  know  you'll  be  so  good  as  to  excuse  me 
from  giving  you  a  journal  of  the  minutia  of  the  siege  of  Yorktown.  Let  it  suffice 
to  say,  that  on  the  6th  ultimo,  we  open'1  our  first  paralell,  on  the  9th,  at  3  o'clock 
P.M.,  our  batteries.  On  the  11th  I  began  the  second  paralell  within  200  paces  of 
the  enemy's  works,  <fc  on  the  14th  two  of  their  advanced  redoubts  were  taken  by 
storm  by  a  detachment  under  the  Marquis  Lafayette,  who  attacked  the  one  with  his 
Americans,  <t  Baron  Viominel  with  the  French,  which  put  it  in  our  power  to  com 
plete  the  second  Paralell  that  night.  16th  form*1  Batteries  &  fird  seventy,  did  great 
damage  to  their  works.  17th,  Ld  Cornwallis  sent  a  flag  requesting  a  cessation  of 
arms  for  24  hours,  &  2  commissioners  from  each  army  to  be  appointed  to  form  a 
capitulation  for  the  army,  and  the  surrender  of  the  striping  and  posts  of  York  A: 

1  The  absence  of  Washington  on  a  visit  to  Count  de  Grasse,  to  arrange  for  the  close 
investment  of  Yorktown  by  sea  and  land,  accounts  for  the  gap  in  the  orders  between 
the  19th  and  24th. 


202  APPENDIX. 

Glostcr.  The  General  sent  no  answer  to  the  first  message  which  came  about  10 
o'clock  A.  M.,  he  recd  a  second  about  4  P.  M.,  &  hostilities  were  ordered  to  cease  & 
a  capitulation  agreed  to — the  general  purposed  thus,  The  garisons  prisoners  of  war 
till  exchangd,  the  whole  to  march  out  with  Colors  cased,  and  not  to  beat  a  French 
or  an  American  march.  The  whole  to  keep  their  private  baggage.  All  public 
stores  to  be  delivered  to  American  Commissary,  <kc.  tfcc.  drc.  On  the  19th,  at  11 
o'clock. 

Their  Flag  was  struck,  and  Major  Hamilton,  with  100  men  (Americans)  took 
possession  of  one  work  and  planted  our  flag,  and  a  French  major,  with  100  men 
(French)  another.  Then  the  Allied  Army  and  the  American  Army  was  drawn  up 
opposite  to  each  other,  and,  I  assure  you  Sir,  they  made  a  most  elegant  appearance. 
About  3  o'clock  P.M.,  the  British  <fc  Foreigners  march1'  out  to  a  place  assgnd,  & 
was  ordered  by  General  Lincoln  to  ground  their  Arms.  The  same  was  done  on  the 
side  of  Gloster,  and  the  whole  marchd  off  this  day  for  the  places  asignd  for  their 
residence  during  Captivity.  The  Earl  <k  a  number  of  his  favourites  are  allowd  to 
go  to  Britain  on  Parole,  <t  (I  am  told)  Col.  Lauren s  is  to  be  sent  out  in  his  Room 
on  Parole,  or  else  the  earl  to  return  to  America  or  France.  Their  stores  are  im 
mense,  there  are  about  70  pieces  of  Brass  ordinance,  beside  ship-guns,  with  a  great 
quantity  of  ammunition,  &  arms  almost  innumerable. 

Their  force  will  amount  to  better  than  7000  total,  officers  included,  in  the  two 
posts,  their  loss  considerable,  in  killed  and  wounded,  ours  really  trifling  for  so  great 
an  affair. 

Thus  has  the  Earl  been  brought  to  anchor  in  the  height  of  his  career.  Col. 
Craig  &  his  detach'  just  arrived  in  time  for  some  of  his  officers  to  see  the  surrender, 
what  the  effect  may  be,  God  knows,  but  I  hope  it  will  bring  a  speedy  peace.  I  ex 
pect  we  shall  immediately  press  for  Carolina,  but  this  is  a  surmise.  My  next  shall 
be  more  particular,  in  the  meantime  be  assurd  of  the  sincerity  of  my  wishes,  and  be 
lieve  me  to  be  your  real  friend  and  Obd'  Humble  Serv' 

RICIID.  BUTLER. 

P.  S. — Not  a  principal  officer  wounded  or  killed,  and  but  very  few  men,  &  I 
think  I  may  with  propriety  now  congratulate  you,  my  friend,  and  country  in  gen 
eral,  with  certain  Independence,  and  the  pleasing  approach  of  Peace. 

To  GENERAL  IRVISK,  at  Carlist;  w  Pittsburg. 


A. 

ABERCROMBIE,  Colonel,  storms  American  works, 
148. 

Attains,  Lieutenant  -  colonel  Peter,  commanding 
Third  Maryland,  115. 

Alexander,  Major  William,  First  Pennsylvania 
Battalion,  115. 

Army,  allied,  marches  to  YorUtown,  88  ;  reaches 
Williamsburg,  101 ;  inarches  from  Williams- 
burg  to  Yorktown, 105  ;  organized  at  Williams- 
burg,  108;  strength  of,  111,  195;  roster  of, 
112;  position  of,  at  Yorktown,  130,  131. 

Army,  British,  strength  of,  111,  195;  roster  of, 
118;  number  surrendered,  158, 164. 

Army,  French,  at  Philadelphia,  93 ;  roster  of, 
116;  strength  of,  195. 

Anderson,  Major,  aide-de-camp,  113,  note. 

Antill,  Lieutenant-colonel  Edward,  Ilazen's  Regi 
ment,  114. 

Aorson,  Captain  and  Brigade  -  major,  Clinton's 
Brigade,  J14. 

Apthorpe,  Captain,  in  British  redoubt,  108. 

Arbuthnot,  Admiral,  foils  Destouches,  32. 

Armand,  Colonel,  Legion  of,  113  ;  at  storming  of 
redoubt,  14f>. 

Arnold,  Benedict,  sent  to  Virginia,  23  ;  expedition 
against,  32. 

Audibert,  Department  Paymaster,  pays  the  troops, 
95. 

B. 

BARBER,  Colonel,  at   the   South,  34;    at    Green 

Spring,  62;    in  Muhlenberg's   Brigade,  114; 

wounded,  147,  note. 
Barber,  Major,  Division-inspector,  113  ;  wounded, 

147,  note. 
I5auman,  Major,  Second  Artillery,  113;   map  of 

Yorktown  by,  198. 

Beaverdam  Creek,  American  wing  crosses,  106. 
Betts,  Captain,  in  storming  of  Redoubt  Xo.  10, 

146. 


Bleeker,  Captain  and  Brigade-major,  114. 

British  army.     See  Army. 
—  plans  of  operation,  17;   fleets,  97;   officers, 
list  of,  1 18, 119  ;  position  of  troops  at  York- 
town,  130. 

Bui-well's  Ferry,  landing-place,  102. 

Bushnell,  Captain  David,  Sappers  and  Miners,!  15. 

Butler,  Colonel,  in  Virginia,  45  ;  in  Simeoe's  skir 
mish,  56 ;  Second  Pennsylvania  Regiment, 
115;  Journal  quoted,  102,  135;  letter  from, 
201. 

c. 

CADWALADKR,  John,  to  Washington,  49. 

Call,  Major,  with  Virginia  riflemen,  55,  56,  60. 

Camden,  battle  of,  22. 

Campbell,  General,  with  Virginia  militia,  52,  55. 

Carrington,  Lieutenant -colonel,  First  Artillery, 
113. 

"Charon,"  frigate,  set  on  fire,  140. 

Chastellux,  Marquis  de,  at  Wethersfield,  72  ;  Ma- 
rcchal-de-camp,  116. 

Choisy,  General,  commands  at  Gloucester,  128. 

Clinton,  Sir  Henry,  at  the  South,  19  ;  instructions 
to  Cornwallis,  21,  23,  28;  on  Washington's 
march,  91 ;  attempts  to  relieve  Cornwallis, 
1 52. 

Clinton,  General  James,  Brigade  of,  114. 

Cobb,  Lieutenant-colonel,  aide-de-camp  to  Wash 
ington,  112. 

Cochran,  Lieutenant-colonel,  Second  Xew  York 
Regiment,  114. 

Cochrane,  Major,  killed,  138. 

Coleman,  Captain,  First  Artillery,  113. 

Congress  reviews  the  armies,  92 ;  rejoices  over 
the  surrender,  and  votes  a  marble  column, 
159. 

Corbin's  Bridge,  Lafayette  at,  40. 

Cornwallis,  Lord,  biographical  sketch  of,  19;  in 
structions  to,  21 ;  plans  in  the  Carolinas,  21  ; 


204 


INDEX. 


retreats  to  Wilmington,  North  Carolina,  26  ; 
at  Petersburg,  28  ;  plans  in  Virginia,  29,  37  ; 
force  in  Virginia,  37  ;  inarches  against  Lafay 
ette,  38  ;  orders  raids,  43  ;  returns  to  Rich 
mond,  52  ;  at  Williamsburg,  56 ;  letter  on  his 
invasion,  59;  at  battle  of  (ireen  Spring,  62; 
at  Portsmouth,  68 ;  at  Yorktown,  68 ;  cor 
nered,  98 ;  attempts  to  cross  to  Gloucester, 
149;  surrenders,  151 ;  paroled,  157. 

Cowpens,  battle  of,  24. 

Cox,  Captain  and  Brigade-major,  Dayton's  Bri 
gade,  115. 

Craig,  Colonel,  arrives  at  Yorktown,  115,  note. 

Craik,  Dr.,  Chief  Physician  of  Washington's  army, 
112. 

Crossley,  Captain,  wounded,  66. 

Camming,  Major,  in  Light  Infantry,  114. 

D. 

DABNEY,  Lieutenant-colonel,  Virginia  State  Regi 
ment,  116, 137,  note. 

Dayton,  Colonel  Elias,  commanding  brigade,  115. 

Dearborn,  Lieutenant-colonel,  Assistant  Quarter 
master-general,  112  ;  letter  from,  175. 

De  Grasse,  news  from,  83  ;  plans  of,  85  ;  arrives 

'          r  i 

in  Chesapeake,  94  ;  battle  with  Graves,  99. 

De  Hart,  Lieutenant -colonel,  Dayton's  Brigade, 
115. 

Destouches,  M.,  to  blockade  Arnold,  32. 

Deuxponts,  Colonel,  in  storming  column,  142. 

Dexter,  Major,  in  Rhode  Island  Regiment,  115. 

Dobbs  Ferry,  allied  army  at,  83. 

Duffy,  Captain,  at  Green  Spring,  66 ;  Fourth  Ar 
tillery,  113. 

Dundas,  Lieutenant-colonel,  British  commissioner 
on  terms  of  peace,  152. 

Du  Portail,  General,  chief  of  engineers,  112. 

E. 

EDWARDS,  Major,  Wayne's  Brigade,  115. 

Elbert,  Colonel,  Superintendent  in  trenches,  112. 

Elk  Hill,  Cormvallis  at,  43. 

Elk,  head  of,  army  at,  94. 

Ely's  Ford,  Lafayette  at,  40,  44. 

Evans,  Chaplain,  Journal  quoted,  101  (note),  127, 

196. 
Everett,  Edward,  quoted,  6. 

F. 

FEBIGER,  Colonel,  in  Virginia,  55. 
Feltman,  Lieutenant,  quoted,  52,  56,  124. 


Ferguson,  Captain,  Fourth  Artillery,  113 ;  battery 

of,  138. 
Fish,  Major  Nicholas,  with  Light  Infantry,  114  ; 

at  storming  of  redoubt,  147. 
Fox,  in  Parliament,  charges  the  disaster  on  the 

navy,  97  ;  rejoices  at  surrender,  160. 
Freeman,  E.  A.  (historian),  quoted,  16,  note. 
French  army  joins  American,  80,  81.     See  Army. 

-  officers,  list  of,  116, 117. 
Fullerton,  Lieutenant  and  Brigade-major,  115. 

G-. 

GALVAN,  Major,  in  Virginia,  55,  60 ;  at  battle  of 
Green  Spring,  62  ;  Division-inspector,  115. 

Gaskins,  Colonel,  Regiment  of,  55 ;  in  Wayne's 
Brigade,  115. 

George  III.  on  the  struggle,  160. 

Germaine,  Lord,  plans  against  the  South,  18. 

German  troops,  officers  of,  119. 

Gibbs,  Major,  with  Light  Infantry,  114. 

Gilliland,  Captain,  Sappers  and  Miners,  115. 

Gimat,  Colonel,  at  the  South,  34 ;  battalion,  at 
battle  of  Green  Spring,  62;  in  Light  Infan 
try,  114;  wounded,  146. 

Gist,  Brigadier-general,  Maryland  Brigade,  115. 

Gloucester,  works  at,  108 ;  skirmish  near,  128; 
surrender  of,  177. 

Graham,  Captain,  quoted,  53  ;   memoirs,  196. 
—  Major,  First  New  York  Regiment,  114. 

Graves,  Admiral,  fights  De  Grasse,  99, 100. 

Green  Spring,  battle  of,  60 ;  loss  at,  67. 

Greene,  General,  commands  at  the  South,  22 ;  to 
Jefferson,  51. 

Guilford  Court  House,  battle  of,  25. 

H. 

HAMILTON,  Major,  in  Virginia,  56 ;  Wayne's  Bri 
gade,  115. 

Hamilton,  Lieutenant  -  colonel  Alexander,  with 
Light  Infantry,  114;  at  storming  of  redoubt, 
144. 

Hand,  General,  Adjutant-general,  112. 

Harmar,  Lieutenant -colonel,  Wayne's  Brigade, 
115. 

Hazen,  Brigadier-general,  Light  Infantry,  114. 

Heath,  General,  in  command  on  the  Hudson,  88. 

Hessian  troops,  officers  of,  119. 

Hobby,  Captain,  Brigade-major,  113. 

Hollinshcad,  Major,  Dayton's  Brigade,  1 15. 

Hood,  Admiral,  99, 100. 

Hudson,  operations  on,  82. 


INDEX. 


205 


Humphreys,  Lieutenant-colonel,  aide-de-camp  to 
Washington,  112. 

Humpton,  Colonel,  in  Virginia,  45. 

Hunt,  Captain  Thomas,  at  storming  of  redoubt, 
145 ;  wounded,  146. 

Huntington,  Lieutenant-colonel,  with  Light  Infan 
try,  114. 

J. 

JEFFERSON,  Governor,  to  Morgan,  3G;  nearly  sur 
prised  by  Tarleton,  43. 

K. 

KEARNEY,  Major,  map  by,  102. 

King's  Mountain  affair,  23. 

Kirkpatrick,  Captain,  Sappers  and  Miners,  115; 

wounded,  146. 
Knox,  Brigadier-general,  Artillery  Brigade,  113; 

artillery  orders,  125  (note),  137  ;  letter  to  his 

wife,  157,  note. 

L. 

LAFAYETTE,  General,  comes  to  America,  30 ;  com 
missioned  by  Congress,  31 ;  his  services,  32  ; 
in  Virginia,  82 ;  ordered  to  the  South,  33 ; 
command  under,  34 ;  his  letters  to  Steuben, 
34,  48 ;  his  letter  to  Morgan,  35  ;  his  force 
in  Virginia,  37;  retreats  from  Richmond,  38; 
follows  Cornwallis,  52,  53  ;  his  force,  55  ;  at 
battle  of  Green  Spring,  60;  thanks  to  the 
troops  in  the  Green  Spring  affair,  67;  on  the 
Pamunky,  96  ;  to  Wayne,  96 ;  unites  with 
French,  98;  General  of  Light  Division,  113  ; 
at  the  siege,  139;  speech  in  1824,  147,  note. 

Lamb,  Colonel,  commanding  Second  Artillery, 
113  ;  letter  from,  174. 

Laurens,  Lieutenant -colonel,  aide-de-camp  to 
Washington,  112;  at  storming  of  redoubt, 
146;  American  commissioner,  152,  155. 

Lawson,  General,  in  Virginia,  35  ;  brigade  of,  55, 
116. 

Lauzun,  skirmish  with  Tarleton,  128. 

Lee,  Richard  Henry,  letter  to  Lovell,  49. 

Leslie,  General  (British),  sent  to  Portsmouth,  22  ; 
goes  to  South  Carolina,  23. 

Lewis,  Colonel,  with  Virginia  riflemen,  109. 

Lincoln,  General  Benjamin,  in  the  campaign,  82  ; 
orders,  90,  note;  division  of,  114;  commands 
at  opening  of  first  parallel,  131 ;  receives 
sword  of  Cornwallis,  156. 

Louis  XVI.  orders  Paris  to  be  illuminated  for 
Yorktown  surrender,  159. 


Luxcrnc,  Chevalier,  aids  in  the  campaign  plans, 
77. 

M. 

MAOHIN,  Captain,  battery  at  Yorktown,  139. 

Malvern  Hill,  Lafayette  at,  68. 

Mansfield,  Lieutenant,  in  storming  of  redoubt, 
146. 

Mattapony  Church,  Lafayette  at,  39. 

McKennan,  Captain,  Delaware  troops,  115. 

McPherson,  Major,  in  Virginia,  55,  56,  60. 

Mechunk  Creek,  Lafayette  at,  47. 

Mercer,  Colonel,  in  Virginia,  36 ;  his  command, 
55,  60  ;  in  skirmish  with  Tarleton,  129. 

Moore,  Captain  Nicholas  R.,  in  Virginia,  36. 
—  House,  commissioners  meet  at,  152. 

Morgan,  General,  at  Cowpens,  24;  in  Virginia,  59. 

Morris,  Robert,  Superintendent  of  Finance,  78, 
85 ;  entertains  Washington,  92. 

Moylan,  Colonel,  Fourth  Dragoons,  113. 

Muhlenberg,  General,  in  Virginia,  32 ;  Tarleton 
attempts  to  surprise,  53  ;  Light  Infantry  Bri 
gade,  113. 

N. 

NELSON,  General,  in  Virginia,  82  ;  Governor,  com 
mands  Virginia  Militia,  116;  patriotism  of, 
139, 140. 

Nelson,  Secretary,  Cornwallis1  head  -  quarters  at 
house  of,  139,  note. 

New  York,  attack  on,  attempted,  82. 

Noailles,  Count,  repels  Abercrombie,  149  ;  French 
commissioner,  152. 

North  Carolina,  Cornwallis  inarches  into,  24. 

o. 

OODF.N,  Colonel,  New  Jersey  Regiment,  115. 
0'IIara  leads  the  column  of  surrender,  156. 
Olney,  Captain,  at  storming  of  redoubt,  145 ; 

wounded,  146. 
Olney,  Lieutenant  -  colonel,  commanding  Rhode 

Island  Regiment,  115. 
Olney,  Major,  Rhode  Island  Regiment,  115. 

P. 

PARLIAMENT  and  Peace,  161. 
Petersburg,  Virginia,  Cornwallis  at,  28. 
Phillips,  General,  in  Virginia,  28,  32. 
Pickering,  Colonel,  Quartermaster-general,  112. 
Popham,  Major,  aide-de-camp,  113,  note;  letter 

from,  174. 

Portsmouth,  Cornwallis  at,  68. 
Princeton,  march  through,  89,  90. 


206 


INDEX. 


R. 

RACCOON  FORD,  Lafayette  at,  44. 

Redoubts,  storming  of,  142-147. 

Reid,  Major,  with  Light  Infantry,  114. 

Riee,  Major,  with  Light  Infantry,  114. 

Rochambeau,  joins  Washington,  80 ;  at  Philadel 
phia,  91,  92;  his  army,  116;  at  surrender, 
186. 

Rodney,  Sir  George,  watching  De  Grasse,  98. 

Ross,  Major,  British  commissioner,  152,  155. 

Roxburg,  Major,  Gist's  Brigade,  115. 

Rush,  Benjamin,  to  Gates,  on  the  prospect,  95. 

s. 

SANDERSON,  Lieutenant,  Diary  of,  170. 

Scammell,  Colonel,  Light  Infantry,  82 ;  mortally 
wounded,  123. 

Sherman,  Roger,  letter  to  Governor  Trumbull 
with  news  of  surrender,  159,  note. 

Siege  regulations,  126. 

Simcoo,  Colonel,  in  Virginia,  89  ;  raid  to  Point  of 
Fork,  43  ;  skirmish  with,  56. 

Smith,  Lieutenant-colonel,  aide-de-camp  to  Wash 
ington,  112;  letter  from,  173. 

Smith,  Captain,  Fourth  Artillery,  113. 

Spencer's  Ordinary,  skirmish  at,  56. 

St.  Clair,  General,  at  Yorktown,  115,  note. 

Steuben,  General,  in  Virginia,  32;  re-enforces 
Lafayette,  53;  at  siege,  136. 

Stevens,  General,  Virginia  Brigade,  55,  116. 
—  Lieutenant-colonel,  Second  Artillery,  113. 

Stewart,  Colonel,  in  Virginia,  45  ;  at  Green  Spring, 
60;  regiment  of,  115. 

T. 

TARLETON,  Colonel,  in  Virginia,  39  ;  raid  to  Char- 

lottesville,  43  ;  projected   raid,  46  ;   skirmish 

with  Lauzun,  128. 
Tilghman,  Lieutenant -colonel,  aide-de-camp  to 

Washington,  112;  Journal  quoted,  139,  197; 

carries  news  of  surrender  of  Congress,  158. 
TVebell's  Landing,  in  Virginia,  102. 
Trenton,  march  through,  89,  90. 
Trumbull,  Colonel,  secretary  to  Washington,  112. 

V. 

VAN  CORTLANDT,  Colonel,  Second  New  York  Regi 
ment,  114. 

Van  Dyke,  Lieutenant-colonel,  First  New  York 
Regiment,  114. 


Van  Schaick,  Colonel,  First  New  York  Regiment, 

114. 

Virginia  invaded,  29;   situation  in,  37. 
Vose,  Colonel,  at  the  South,  34 ;  at  Green  Spring. 

62  ;  regiment  of,  114. 

w. 

WASHINGTON  urged  to  go  to  Virginia,  49,  50  ;  on 
the  Hudson,  71 ;  review  of  the  situation,  71 ; 
arranges  a  campaign,  72,  76  ;  plans  modified, 
79;  plans  by,  84;  marches  on  Cornwallis,  87; 
at  Philadelphia,  91,  92;  orders  at  head  of 
Elk,  95  ;  at  Mount  Vcrnon,  102 ;  reaches 
Williamsburg,  102;  commander-in-chief  of  the 
allied  army,  112;  orders  to  troops,  122, 199; 
reconnoitres,  124  ;  fires  first  shot,  138  ;  at  the 
surrender,  156 ;  extracts  from  journal  of,  166 ; 
congratulatory  order  to  the  army,  178. 

Washington,  Major,  aide-de-camp  to  Lafayette, 
113,  note. 

Wayne,  General,  to  report  in  Virginia,  35;  joins 
Lafayette,  45  ;  brigade,  55,  60, 115  ;  at  battle 
of  Green  Spring,  62 ;  letter  to  Governor  Reed, 
127. 

Webster,  Daniel,  quoted,  16. 

Wecdon,  General,  Virginia  Militia,  116;  on  Glou 
cester  side,  128. 

Welles,  Captain,  quoted,  53. 

W'cthersfield,  Connecticut,  Washington  and  Ro 
chambeau  at,  72. 

Williams,  Captain,  Brigade -major,  115;  captain 
in  Light  Infantry,  145. 

Williamsburg,  allied  army  at,  102. 

Willis,  Major,  with  Virginia  militia,  55,  56,  60. 

Wilmington,  North  Carolina,  Cornwallis  at,  26. 

Winston's  Bridge,  Lafayette  at,  38,  39. 

Woodson,  Major,  Hazen's  Regiment,  114. 

Wyllys,  Major,  at  battle  of  Green  Spring,  62  ;  at 
storming  of  redoubt,  145. 

Y. 

YORKTOWN,  11;  significance  of,  11-16;  effect  of 
the  surrender  on  Great  Britain,  14  ;  on  Amer 
ica,  14  ;  on  Anglo-Saxon  race,  13  ;  campaign, 
who  planned  it,  84  ;  British  works  at,  106  ; 
to-day,  108,  note;  invested,  106,  119,  120; 
final  advance  on,  131  ;  first  parallel  opened, 
131;  second  parallel  opened,  140;  surren 
ders,  151 ;  statistics  of  losses,  prisoners  at, 
etc.,  158, 164.  See  Appendix. 


THE  END. 


INTERESTING    WORKS 


OF 


AMERICAN    HISTORY 


Logging's  Cyclopaedia  of  United  Stales  History, 

Popular  Cyclopaedia  of  United  States  History,  from  the  Aboriginal  Period  to  1870.  UN- 
BENSON  J.  LOSSING,  LL.D.  In  two  volumes,  large  8vo,  illustrated  with  1000  engrav 
ings,  (yearly  Ready.) 

Lossing's  Field-Book  of  the  Revolution, 

Pictorial  Field-Book  of  the  Revolution  ;  or,  Illustrations  by  Pen  and  Pencil  of  the  Historv, 
Biography,  Scenery,  Relics,  and  Traditions  of  the  War  for  Independence.  By  BENSON 
J.  LOSSING.  2  vols.,  8vo,  Cloth,  $14  00;  Sheep,  $15  00;  Half  Calf,  $18  00. 

Lossing's  Field-Book  of  the  War  of  1812, 

Pictorial  Field-Book  of  the  War  of  1812  ;  or.  Illustrations  by  Pen  and  Pencil  of  the  His 
tory,  Biography,  Scenery,  Relics,  and  Traditions  of  the  last  War  for  American  Indepen 
dence.  By  BENSON  J.  LOSSING.  With  882  Illustrations,  engraved  on  Wood,  chiefly  from 
Original  Sketches  by  the  Author.  In  One  Volume,  108-4  pages,  large  8vo.  Price,  in 
Cloth,  $7  00;  Sheep,  $8  50;  Full  Roan,  $9  00 ;  Half  Calf  or  Half  Morocco  extra,  $10  00. 

Logging's  History  of  the  United  States  Navy, 

The  Story  of  the  United  States  Navy,  for  Boys.  By  BENSON  J.  LOSSING,  LL.D.  Illus 
trated  12mo,  Cloth,  $1  75. 

llildreth's  History  of  the  United  States, 

The  History  of  the  United  States.  First  Series. — From  the  First  Settlement  of  the  Coun 
try  to  the  Adoption  of  the  Federal  Constitution.  Second  Series. — From  the  Adoption  cf 
the  Federal  Constitution  to  the  End  of  the  Sixteentli  Congress.  By  RICHARD  HILDRETH. 
G  vols.,  8vo,  Cloth,  with  Paper  Labels,  Uncut  Edges  and  Gilt  Tops,  $12  00. 

Lodge's  English  Colonies  in  America, 

A  Short  History  of  the  English  Colonies  in  America.  Bv  HENRY  CABOT  LODGIS.  8vo, 
Half  Leather,  $3  00. 

Draper's  American  Civil  War, 

History  of  the  American  Civil  War.  By  JOHN  W.  DRAPER,  M.D.,  LL.D.  In  Three 
Volumes.  8vo,  Cloth,  $10  50;  Sheep,  $12  00;  Half  Calf,  $17  25. 

Harper's  Pictorial  History  of  the  Rebellion, 

Harper's  Pictorial  History  of  the  Great  Rebellion  in  the  United  States.  With  nearly  1000 
Illustrations— Maps,  Plans,  Scenes,  and  Portraits.  In  Two  Volumes,  4to,  Cloth,  $12  00. 


PUBLISHED  BY  HARPER  &  BROTHERS,  NEW  YORK. 

ftiT^  HARPER  &  BROTHERS  it-ill  xt-mf  ,,,<//  of  the  above  works  by  mail,  postage  prepaid,  to  any  part 
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